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THE NEW BLACK VIEW

Vol. 116 No. 52 | December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025

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THE NEW BLACK VIEW

Vol. 116 No. 2 | January 9, 2025 - January 15, 2025

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THE NEW BLACK VIEW

Vol. 116 No. 3 | January 16, 2025 - January 22, 2025

THE RACE IS ON!

BROOKLYN IN CHARGE U.S. REP. CLARKE TO HEAD CONGRESSIONAL BLACK CAUCUS

MAYORAL CANDIDATES JOCKEY FOR POSITION

(See story on page 6)

Vol. 116 No. 4 | January 23, 2025 - January 29, 2025

THE NEW BLACK VIEW

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CLIMATE FUTURE KNOWING WHAT NYC NEEDS

Vol. 116 No. 5 | January 30, 2025 - February 5, 2025

THE NEW BLACK VIEW

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MAYOR ADAMS

FACES THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM

(See story on page 6)

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Urban Agenda by David R. Jones, President and CEO of the Community Service Society of New York - See page 5 (AmNews Illustration)

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LONG WAITS FOR TRANSFERS LEAVE TENANTS UNSAFE

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THE NEW BLACK VIEW

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THE NEW BLACK VIEW

Vol. 116 No. 8 | February 20, 2025 - February 26, 2025

Vol. 116 No. 9 | February 27, 2025 - March 5, 2025

THE NEW BLACK VIEW

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Vol. 116 No. 10 | March 6, 2025 - March 12, 2025

THE NEW BLACK VIEW

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Vol. 116 No. 11 | March 13, 2025 - March 19, 2025

THE NEW BLACK VIEW

NYPD STOPS MORE BLACK NYERS

HOME GROWN

(See story on page 6)

Mayor Adams: Stand Up for NYC’s Immigrants!

Short-Staffing of Independent Check on NYPD Invites Police Abuses (AmNews Illustration)

NYC’S MATERNAL MORTALITY CRISIS

THE NEW BLACK VIEW

NYCHA LIMBO

(See story on page 6)

Vol. 116 No. 7 | February 13, 2025 - February 19, 2025

Vol. 116 No. 6 | February 6, 2025 - February 12, 2025

(See story on page 6)

HOW MUTUAL AID HAS SUPPORTED BLACK COMMUNITIES

(See story on page 6)

INSPIRATION FOR 'SING SING' FILM FIGHTS WRONGFUL CONVICTION (See story on page 6)

Trump 2.0: Exactly What We Feared

A LIFE WELL LIVED H azel Dukes (See story on page 2)

A Public Bank Could Boost Access for Those Left Behind by Wall Street Urban Agenda by David R. Jones, President and CEO of the Community Service Society of New York - See page 5

Urban Agenda by David R. Jones, President and CEO of the Community Service Society of New York - See page 5

(Tatum Family photo)

DIVINE’S INTERVENTION (AmNews Illustration)

Cruel GOP Medicaid Cuts Dire for All New Yorkers Urban Agenda by David R. Jones, President and CEO of the Community Service Society of New York - See page 5

MARCH 17, 1932 – MARCH 1, 2025

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THE NEW BLACK VIEW

Vol. 116 No. 12 | March 20, 2025 - March 26, 2025

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WOMEN LEAD THE WAY BLACK WOMEN SHAPE ACADEMIA (See story on page 8)

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THE NEW BLACK VIEW

Vol. 116 No. 13 | March 27, 2025 - April 2, 2025

Vol. 116 No. 14 | April 3, 2025 - April 9, 2025

THE NEW BLACK VIEW

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NY FIGHTS BACK

PANDEMIC SOLUTIONS

AGAINST ATTACKS ON VOTING RIGHTS & IMMIGRANTS

COVID-19 SHEDS LIGHT ON THE SYSTEMIC BIASES BLACK PHYSICIANS FACE

Vol. 116 No. 15 | April 10, 2025 - April 16, 2025

THE NEW BLACK VIEW

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MAYORAL RUMBLE THE FIGHT FOR CITY HALL (See story on page 2)

Vol. 116 No. 16 | April 17, 2025 - April 23, 2025

THE NEW BLACK VIEW

THE LEGACY OF ZERO-TOLERANCE (See story on page 6)

(See story on page 6)

(Amanda Ulloa Illustration / AmNews)

(AmNews)

The Trump Administration’s Reckless Assault on Public Health

Albany can stand up to Trump by defending and funding the MTA

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Urban Agenda by David R. Jones, President and CEO of the Community Service Society of New York - See page 5 (Illustration by AmNews, Tdorante10, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons )

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Vol. 116 No. 17 | April 24, 2025 - April 30, 2025

(Amanda Ulloa Illustration / AmNews)

(AmNews)

THE NEW BLACK VIEW

THE WHITE BONUS: THE CASH VALUE OF RACISM IN AMERICA (See story on page 18)

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THE NEW BLACK VIEW

Vol. 116 No. 18 | May 1, 2025 - May 7, 2025

THE HOUSING BARRIER GUN VIOLENCE SURVIVORS STRUGGLE TO FIND ACCESSIBLE HOUSING

Vol. 116 No. 19 | May 8, 2025 - May 14, 2025

THE NEW BLACK VIEW

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THE HOUSING BARRIER THE STRUGGLE FOR HOME MODIFICATIONS (See story on page 14)

Vol. 116 No. 20 | May 15, 2025 - May 21, 2025

THE NEW BLACK VIEW

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THE SCHOMBURG TURNS 100

THE NEW BLACK VIEW

CLIMATE SOLUTIONS NYC HIGH SCHOOLERS WORK TO PROTECT BROOKLYN’S SHORELINE

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Vol. 116 No. 21 | May 22, 2025 - May 28, 2025

(See story on page 16)

(Amanda Ulloa Illustration / AmNews)

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Do Something Now: Take the First Steps Towards a Fairer Property Tax

Trump Student Loan Policies Will Financially Ruin Some New Yorkers

Martha E. Stark, Esq., Policy Director for Tax Equity Now New York (TENNY) - See page 5

Urban Agenda by David R. Jones, President and CEO of the Community Service Society of New York - See page 5

GOP Budget Will Bring NY Housing Doomsday Urban Agenda by David R. Jones, President and CEO of the Community Service Society of New York - See page 5 (Amanda Ulloa Illustration / AmNews)

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Vol. 116 No. 22 | May 29, 2025 - June 4, 2025

THE NEW BLACK VIEW

D I T

I O

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CHARLIE RANGEL (1930-2025)

Vol. 116 No. 23 | June 5, 2025 - June 11, 2025

THE NEW BLACK VIEW

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SUMMER BOOKS 2025

(See stories starting on page 23)

(See coverage on page 16)

Vol. 116 No. 24 | June 12, 2025 - June 18, 2025

THE NEW BLACK VIEW

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Vol. 116 No. 25 | June 19, 2025 - June 25, 2025

THE NEW BLACK VIEW

MAYORAL CANDIDATES ON GUN VIOLENCE

Vol. 116 No. 26 | June 26, 2025 - July 2, 2025

THE NEW BLACK VIEW

GAY BY THE GRACE OF GOD A BLACK PASTOR’S JOURNEY

(See coverage on page 2)

(See coverage on page 6) (See coverage on page 6)

(Amanda Ulloa Illustration) (Photo illustration by AmNews)

A Long Overdue Step Toward Legal Justice

A Son of Harlem: Congressman Charles B. Rangel (1930 – 2025)

Urban Agenda by David R. Jones, President and CEO of the Community Service Society of New York - See page 5

Urban Agenda by David R. Jones, President and CEO of the Community Service Society of New York - See page 5 (Julie Skarrett photo)

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2 • December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025

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New Yorkers are fired up over Trump’s executive order targeting voting rights and citizenship By ARIAMA C. LONG Amsterdam News Staff One of President Donald Trump’s latest executive orders is targeting voting rights and mail-in ballots. A move that New York State officials and advocates are slamming as an attack on voters of color, immigrants, and low-income communities. The order, which was made public on March 25, requires people to show documents, like a passport, proving their citizenship in order to register to vote –– mimicking the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act (SAVE Act). It also bans states from counting mail ballots that arrive after Election Day. Members of the New Yorkers for Inclusive Democracy (NYID) coalition warned that “hard-won freedoms” like voting rights needed to be protected by the state’s legislature in an op-ed on March 19. In their demands they called for the state to invest at least $10.8 million in the upcoming budget towards voter education and outreach, as well as the passage of the Democracy During Detention Act (S440/A2121) to facilitate voting for eligible detainees, and the Enhanced Automatic Voter Registration bill (S88) to automatically register eligible voters through agencies like the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV ). “The executive order signed by President Trump is a blatant attempt at voter suppression that could disenfranchise millions of eligible voters. The order would create unnecessary barriers to the free exercise of the very cornerstone of our democracy –– the right to vote. It would have the greatest impact on communities of color and naturalized citizens,” said Assemblymember Latrice Walker, chair of the Assembly’s election law committee and a member of NYID, in a statement. Walker denounced the order as “unconstitutional” because the power to determine the rules for federal elections lies with the states. “So, the president has no authority to require documentary proof of citizenship to register to vote,” said Walker. She noted that mail-in ballots received by or after Election Day is standard practice in 18 states, including New York, as long as they are postmarked by Election Day. Trump claims that the order “strengthens voter citizenship verification” and “bans foreign nationals from interfering in U.S. elections.” To be clear, said the Brennan Center for Justice, noncitizens already can’t vote in state and federal elections under penalty of criminal prosecution and that instances of in-person voter fraud are extremely low. The “myth of noncitizen voting” gained traction with “election deniers” in the last five years to undermine trust in the electoral system, said the Brennan Center. New York City Council did once float the

(Collage by Amanda Ulloa)

idea of allowing “tax paying” noncitizens to vote in local elections and managed to pass Bill Intro 1867 (Local Law 11) in 2021. This would have allowed more than 800,000 immigrant New Yorkers who held green cards, work authorizations, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) status, or Temporary Protected Status (TPS) to vote. It was immediately struck down by a state judge in 2022 and again in 2025 by the state’s Court of Appeals. “We’ve seen this same effort play out with the recent decision to strike down Local Law 11—an initiative that would have enfranchised nearly one million immigrant New Yorkers,” said President & CEO of the New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC) Murad Awawdeh in a statement. “This ruling wasn’t just a setback for immigrant communities; it’s part of the broader national trend of chipping away at voting rights.” A similar issue occurs with voter identity document (ID) laws in the U.S, which indeed are necessary to prevent voter fraud but have historically and disproportionately impacted Black, Latino, Native American, elderly, and student voters, reported the League of Women Voters (LWV). During the Jim Crow era, white supremacists in government and law enforcement began to use restrictive and ridiculous tactics to prevent Black people from voting. This included literacy tests and poll taxes, along with unwarranted arrests and outright violence. Most of these were banned in 1965 under the Voting Rights Act (VRA), but voter ID laws persisted. “For me—as a Black woman, a person of faith, and someone deeply rooted in com-

Black and Brown voters in Brooklyn lined up at an early voting poll site during 2024’s presidential election on Tuesday, November 5. (Ariama C. Long photos)

munity—voting is sacred, it is the foundation of our civic and spiritual commitment to justice,” said Crystal Walthall, executive director of Faith in New York. “But the promise of the federal Voting Rights Act has never been fully realized for too many of our communities. From purges to suppression, and now to coordinated attacks from the highest levels of government, the right to vote is under threat.” Many U.S citizens also just don’t have an ID or access to a valid ID since the most common form is a driver’s license. Other See VOTING RIGHTS on page 28

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS B E S T O F 2 0 2 5

December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025 • 3

Activists look for changes with U.N.’s Second International Decade for People of African Descent By KAREN JUANITA CARRILLO Amsterdam News Staff By JESÚS CHUCHO GARCIA Special to the AmNews The United Nations has launched a Second International Decade for People of African Descent. This new decade — which officially began January 1, 2025, and will continue until December 31, 2034 — will again employ a Permanent Forum on People of African Descent to document and highlight quality-oflife issues for Black people worldwide. The first Decade, which ran from 2015 to 2024, saw the Permanent Forum meet three times. The Permanent Forum will hold its fourth session at the United Nations’ New York City headquarters April 14-17, 2025. The theme of the Second Decade mirrors that of the initial decade: “recognition, justice, and development.” Activists expressed excitement, gratitude, and a good deal of apprehension about the naming of a Second Decade. “There were some positives in the First Decade,” said Conrad Bryan of the Association of Mixed Race Irish, “but unfortunately so many States started taking action near the very end,” making it seem as if not much was accomplished. A long-term Black activist demand The first Decade was important because it placed the global concerns of African descendants in the international arena. This had been a long-term Black activist demand –– a request that started back when the United Nations system was created. Activists have wanted the United Nations to pay attention to the issues faced by Afrodescendant communities since its establishment. In 1947, W.E.B. Du Bois, a founding member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), sent the United Nations a 94-page document entitled “An Appeal to the World: A Statement on the Denial of Human Rights to Minorities.” “[T]oday,” DuBois wrote in the introduction, “the paradox again looms after the second World War. We have [a] recrudescence of race hate and caste restrictions in the United States and of these dangerous tendencies not simply for the United States itself but for all nations. When will nations learn that their enemies are quite as often within their own country as without? It is not Russia that threatens the United States so much as Mississippi; not Stalin and Molotov but Bilbo and Rankin; internal injustice done to one’s brothers is far more dangerous than the aggression of strangers from abroad.” Harlem’s own Malcolm X planned to turn to the U.N. to aid Black Americans. In a 1964 article, the Amsterdam News quoted the Black-nationalist leader as saying that he had “received pledges from African nations to support a stand against the United States before the United Na-

tions. The United States would be compelled to face the same charges as South Africa, Portugal, and Rhodesia. The United States…has colonized the Negro people just like the people of Africa and Asia were colonized by Europeans.” More recent calls for the U.N. to acknowledge how racism curtails the lives of Black people were made at the Durban World Conference Against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance in 2001 and again at the IV Meeting of Afrodescendant Social Movements in Caracas, Venezuela in 2011. Prioritizing Black communities Following the first Decade declaration, the U.N. created a Permanent Forum on People of African Descent to advise its Human Rights Council. But Venezuelan anthropologist Diógenes Diógenes Díaz Campos is a Venezuelan anthropologist Díaz Campos asserts that neither and executive committee member of the Afrothis initiative nor the first Decade descendant Regional Articulation in the Americas and has led to the kind of new policies the Caribbean (ARAAC). (Diógenes Díaz Campos) that change the realities of Black communities. the U.N. should enhance its mechanisms, Díaz Campos is an executive committee most believed that the organization’s initiamember of ARAAC (Articulacion Region- tives have positively impacted the advanceal Afrodescendientes de America Latina y ment of their political rights at home. el Caribe/Regional Afrodescendant CoorJacqui Goegebeur, a spokesperson for the dination for Latin America and the Carib- Association of Belgian Metissen (Associabean) and served as the delegate to U.N. tion Métis de Belgique/Metis van België), events from the Red de Organizaciones Af- told the Amsterdam News, that the Permarovenezola (Network of Afro-Venezuelan nent Forums were a helpful opportunity organizations). “The Second Internation- to meet with other Afrodescendant groups al Decade for People of African Descent is and form alliances. “It was, as far as it conbeing met with skepticism in light of the cerns our case, it was good,” Goegebeur failure of the first one,” he claimed. “While said. “We organized our own event and it millions of people of African descent was very positive with people thinking of remain in critical poverty, initiatives such working together to create a working group as the U.N. Permanent Forum are criticized on justice so as to create knowledge and be as elitist and manipulated spaces. There is professional. I hope that those kinds of vian urgent need to build an autonomous sions will be realized.” In 2019, Belgium’s prime minister puband radical movement that prioritizes historical reparations and restorative justice licly apologized for the discriminatory poland exposes opportunistic leadership and icies his nation imposed on “métis,” or mixed-race children. These children, the the complicity of power centers. “There is an urgent need to evaluate the offspring of European fathers and women first decade, [look at] the compliance by from Belgian colonies like the DemocratStates with the general guidelines of ‘rec- ic Republic of the Congo, Burundi, and ognition, justice, and development,’ di- Rwanda, were forcibly placed in orphanagagnose the few public policies developed es in the 1940s and 1950s. Goegebeur says and their achievements, and look at the that the 2019 public apology was shaped execution of the budget and the balance by the first Decade’s focus on recognizon the part of Afrodescendant commu- ing Afrodescendant people. “In the case of nities and peoples. In general, there has mixed-race métis children in Belgium, the been no progress in public policies in favor court decided that it was indeed a crime of the more than 200 million people of Af- against humanity and that the Belgian state rican descent in [this] region. We are still was responsible,” she noted. “We hope that in a situation of critical poverty and the in the following discussions and meetings faces of our women, children, and youth with the government, we will be able to find agreements on what Belgium will do and are images of misery.” While many activists acknowledged that should do to facilitate us to get our rights

and demands in line.” Bryan of The Association of Mixed Race Irish reports that Ireland’s people of mixed African-Irish heritage successfully utilized U.N. mechanisms to highlight their concerns. “On a positive note, the Irish State introduced a fund to support people of African descent in the country who wish to run projects around the themes of recognition and celebration of people of African descent,” he said. “More generally, I am hoping that the Second Decade will bring more progress in terms of justice and development. Importantly, we need a lot more political support and funding from States to make the mechanisms more effective and to ensure that a new declaration on human rights becomes a reality.” Meanwhile in Canada, Hodan Ahmed Mohamed, the founder of Arawelo Institute for Leadership & Public Policy, says Black Canadian activists in Halifax, Ontario, and to a certain extent Quebec, pushed their government to respond to the declaration of the first Decade. “Prime Minister [Justin] Trudeau and his government recognized the decade in 2018: three, almost four years after the decade was recognized at the U.N. level, they acknowledged the decade. Canada has put a lot of money behind the decade, more on funneling funds into Black entrepreneurship, like [CA$] 800 million so far has been invested in Black communities. One of our major concerns was that you have all of this money going around into different Black communities in a way that hasn’t been going around for decades, but now that Trudeau resigned, when the conservative government comes to power, a lot of that will disappear because there is not a substantive policy in place or legislation to keep it.” Ahmed Mohamed, who is also a senior U.N. Human Rights Fellow for People of African Descent, noted that the Permanent Forum’s members are well-established activists and scholars who volunteer to be on the panel –– they’re not paid for their work and only receive travel and hotel fare reimbursements to attend forums from their governments. “People forget that the Permanent Forum for People of African Descent is a policy forum –– it doesn’t have a particular mechanism to create funds, but it is a forum that allows Black people to have a direct conversation with state actors and to work with the Permanent Forum members. … The forum comes under the U.N. Human Rights Council, and the U.N. Human Rights Council…is the least funded entity at the U.N., but they do the most work. “I would say it’s up to us to push our respective countries to contribute to this Forum because the expectations of the U.N. Permanent Forum and the lack of funding that they face, it doesn’t match. They can’t do adequate work; they can’t create access to civil society with the funds that they actually get.”

4 • December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS B E S T O F 2 0 2 5

Lt. Governor Antonio Delgado chats about why he’s running against Hochul By TANDY LAU Amsterdam News staff reporter By JASON EVAN PONTEROTTO Special to the AmNews “Where’s the syrup?” asks Lt. Governor Antonio Delgado over lunch at Amy Ruth’s in Harlem this past Friday, June 6. He kicked off his campaign to primary Gov. Kathy Hochul in next year’s gubernatorial election just four days prior, all the while retaining his responsibilities as the state’s second-highest official. But chicken-andwaffles (all dark meat) makes up everything on his plate for the afternoon. Delgado officially announced his candidacy on June 2 in a rare move for a sitting Lieutenant Governor. His frayed relationship with former running mate Gov. Hochul came under scrutiny earlier this year when he announced he would not seek re-election alongside her. They don’t interact much anymore, he says. “I’m unsatisfied,” said Delgado. “I feel like the status quo is broken. People are really hurting and we need better leadership — I think New York deserves better leadership.” He initially envisioned serving as a “partner in the process of governance” when Hochul tapped him to replace predecessor Brian Benjamin in 2022. Delgado now believes he can only push his legislative priorities as the state’s top official, rather than standing next to her. If elected, he would become New York’s second Black governor. Unlike Benjamin, Delgado does not hail from Harlem. In fact, uptown is downtown from his hometown of Schenectady. Yet he believes his housing, healthcare, and childcare proposals will resonate most with working-class Black neighborhoods in New York City. “There’s public dollars that are meant to create economic development in our communities like Harlem,” said Delgado. “And it doesn’t seem like it’s truly reaching the community. It feels like the money gets put out there, but we never see the impact in a way that actually meaningfully affects the people in the community.” His economic agenda includes raising the minimum wage, fixing the opaque budget process, and raising the top corporate tax rate. Some solutions overlap with Hochul’s platform. Her statewide minimum wage increase hit municipalities outside of the city this year, and she raised the corporate tax rate to fund the MTA. But his agenda also argues Hochul’s middle-class tax cut in the recent budget –– which will reduce state taxes for more than 75% of New Yorkers starting next year –– does not do enough. Delgado argues median earners would “only receive about $15 in tax relief per month while most of the benefits go to the wealthiest New Yorkers.”

Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado stands in front of a mural at Amy Ruth’s restaurant in Harlem on Friday, June 6. (Tandy Lau photo)

Though establishing a statewide rental assistance program and cracking down on corporate landlords, Delgado’s housing plan aims to ensure housing costs do not surpass 30% or more of any New Yorker’s income. He argues the governor is doubling down on “a failed strategy of tax credits and subsidies for developers.” Hochul extended the 421-a tax incentive last year, giving developers a property tax exemption for building multiple dwellings. Delgado’s “vision for New York” also includes universal healthcare and universal child care proposals. His plan promises shifting reliance away from insurance companies and an Office of Healthcare Accountability to take on corporate greed among private healthcare providers. He also proposes to “finish the job” on universal pre-K, given “the reality in many parts of the state is too few seats, too little funding, and no guarantee of full-day programs.” An official public safety plan remains a work in progress for Delgado. But he believes the current approach emphasizes punishment and strips away human dignity. Delgado extolled the alternative to incarceration approach and questioned why so

many people, particularly seniors, remain incarcerated in New York City prisons for decades. “All we’re talking about is the nature of the crime when the nature of the crime never changes,” he said. “But maybe the person has.” He would not confirm support for existing bills like elderly parole, but said such bills are the type of thinking he likes to see. With the recent killings of Robert Brooks and Messiah Nantwi in New York State prisons, Delgado believes there is more room for accountability. The next governor will likely contend with the Trump administration’s continued shrinking of the federal government and attempts to cut back on federal resources, including SNAP and health benefits. When asked about his plan to look out for New Yorkers who rely on federal assistance programs, Delgado said the state must step in. “You can’t just simply say call your congressperson…That’s not gonna stop or mitigate the harm,” Delgado said. “There needs to be a conversation on how we leverage our resources, whether it’s reserves or revenue-generating approaches. But we need to do everything we can to try to inject

state resources in those areas with the most vulnerability.” On the need to support Minority-Women Business Enterprises (MWBEs), Delgado says there are still too many hurdles for Black and Latino-owned businesses, in particular, to access capital, and that there must be more intentionality behind efforts to grow these businesses. “I think we should probably be thinking about how to reimagine what it means to be labeled, and what type of advantages does it give you in a meaningful way other than being able to track these numbers,” Delgado said. “I’m all for making sure that we grow those businesses, but let’s make sure that when we grow them, they can actually thrive and provide for their families.” Beyond MWBEs, Delgado says capital must be brought directly to low-income communities through the Community Development Financial Institutions’ (CDFI) Fund. Beyond politics, he wants everyone to know about his hardwood days — Delgado was inducted into the Upstate New York Basketball Hall of Fame and played Division I for Colgate University. He also rapped under the name “AD the Voice” and mentions his album can be found on Spotify. Delgado previously served on Capitol Hill as upstate New York’s first-ever Black and Brown congressman. He represented New York’s 19th congressional district, which includes the Catskills and the Hudson Valley. “What I’ve learned in government, especially having served in upstate New York where a lot of people that I worked with were Republicans, you have to be in a position where, no matter what, you’re willing to figure out how to find common ground and work through whatever differences there might be,” said Delgado, before passing around a basket of cornbread. He believes his experience will come in handy for whoever becomes New York City mayor. Delgado shrugged his shoulders when asked whether he preferred to work with a specific candidate. “I’m excited for the process to work itself out,” he concluded. An uphill climb awaits him in 2026. Hochul enjoys the incumbent’s advantage and continues collecting endorsements, most recently with Rep. Pat Ryan, who now holds Delgado’s former House seat. And New York State is no longer an unassailable democratic stronghold if the last election provides any indication. Hochul and Delgado narrowly defeated Republican candidate Lee Zeldin two years ago in the closest race in decades. But first things first. Delgado needs his packet of syrup. Hochul’s campaign and the Governor’s Office both declined to comment.

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS B E S T O F 2 0 2 5

December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025 • 5

Now Hiring: Receivership search begins after judge greenlights Rikers takeover By TANDY LAU Amsterdam News Staff, Report for America Corps Member Interested in running the city’s jail system? Do you have excellent communication and demonstrative collaborative skills — along with substantial correctional and leadership experience outside of the New York Department of Corrections (DOC)? If so, you can apply for the Nunez Remediation Manager role by sending a cover letter, resume, and three references to nunezremediationmanagerapps@nysd. uscourts.gov. The fancy title ostensibly refers to the independent receiver assigned to oversee Rikers Island facilities and other local jails after Chief U.S. District Judge Laura Swain ordered the long-deliberated federal takeover last Tuesday, May 13. At least four candidates need to be “confidently” presented to the court by Aug. 29. “The nearly decade-long record in this case, amassed since the Consent Judgment went into effect, establishes that less extreme remediation measures have failed,” wrote Swain in her 77-page opinion. “Defendants have demonstrated — in virtually every core area the Court and the Monitor have identified as related to the persistence of excessive and unnecessary force — that neither court orders nor the Monitor’s interventions are sufficient to push the DOC toward compliance.” Receivership — the last-ditch effort of placing an institution under a custodian — seemed inevitable since last November, when Swain held the city in contempt for repeated noncompliance with court-mandated reforms from the Nunez class-action settlement alleging unconstitutional and excessive use of force on Rikers Island by staff. Other remedies like levying financial penalties and jailing responsible officials were mentioned but not seriously considered. Through the receivership order, the city will transfer power over local jails to a third-party expert appointed by the federal courts. The receiver would return control over the facilities once compliance is met. A spokesperson for Mayor Eric Adams directed to comments he made during a May 13 media roundtable. He argued the poor conditions on Rikers date back long before he entered office and pointed to reductions in slashings and staff sick-outs. However, 38 people died in or shortly after DOC custody under the Adams administration. Almost all were housed on Rikers Island. “So we’re just going to follow the rules to improve the conditions of Rikers,” said Adams. “I’ve been on Rikers Island more than any man in the history of this city, speaking to correction officers and inmates. And we’ve done more to stop the river that

“most egregious incidents.” “Courts, just as a general matter, don’t want these sorts of cases,” said Brennan Center for Justice senior fellow Hernandez Stroud. “They do not see themselves as administrators of jails and prisons, and it is only when there is neglect by a political government that courts feel duty-bound after years and years of giving the government opportunities, do they ever feel compelled to get involved.” “There is immense judicial reluctance, and these are just not the cases that judges are hunting for … we live in a democracy. Courts really are there to decide questions [like] ‘is this constitutional?’ The court doesn’t want to go any further than necessary, because it’s not accountable politically. People haven’t voted Judge Swain [into] office, but on the other side of that is the Constitution, the rights of incarcerated people, and the rule of law.”

New York City Mayor Eric Adams meets with incarcerated men on Rikers Island on March 26, 2024. Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office

feeds Rikers Island. We’ve done that. And so it’s up to the — that’s outside my span of control. I’m going to follow whatever rules she puts in place because she has the authority to do so.” Debra Greenberger, a partner at class counsel Emery Celli Brinckerhoff Abady Ward & Maazel LLP, said the details remain in the works between the plaintiffs and the city. She is one of the lawyers representing all present and future individuals incarcerated by the DOC for injunctive and declaratory relief in the lawsuit (although some named plaintiffs also sued for monetary damages). “The point of all of these changes was to fix the problem,” said Greenberger over the phone. “And the city also agreed that there would be an independent monitor who would look at and evaluate whether the city was complying with the provisions of the order. What happened over the life of this consent judgment is that the monitor, time and again, would say the city is not complying with what they agreed to do. Even when there [were] moments of progress, there would then be backsliding. “On multiple occasions through the course of this agreement, the court entered into other agreements, second agreements [and] action plans — all different ways to get to a world where the city actually makes the jail safe for people in custody. It contin-

ued not to work.” Nine years of Nunez Nunez was the sixth class-action lawsuit “challenging a pattern and practice of excessive and unnecessary force in New York City’s jails.” A concurrent U.S. Attorney’s Office investigation found constitutional violations specifically against male teenagers in custody predating Raise the Age laws. Court-ordered reforms sprang from the settlement in fall 2015 through 25 sections and “hundreds of provisions” for the DOC to implement. Additionally, a monitor was federally appointed to document progress. Year after year, the city fell short on the required reforms, and the action plan was later enacted in 2022. The monitoring team believed DOC did not lack “the authority and the ability to address” the dangerous jail conditions and pointed to the department’s “foundational patterns and practices” hampering compliance with the court’s orders. This October marks a decade since Nunez was settled. The most recent monitor’s report, filed just last week, detailed “little progress in reducing the frequency with which staff use force to respond to the behaviors of people in custody” and pointed to greater use of force rates in 2024 than when the litigation began. However, they noted improvements in decreasing the

Receivership’s royal history Long before receivers oversaw the jails between the Bronx and Queens, they managed the affairs of kings. The concept dates back to English history, according to Stroud. “Receivership actually emerged in England centuries ago as a way to protect real property,” he said. “When a king would die without a son, the court stepped in to appoint a temporary person to essentially manage the castle. This concept was exported to the United States in the late 1800s [to] early 1900s. [More than a quarter] of the nation’s railroad trackage was under receivership because [the corporations whose] job it was to run the railroads were doing it for their own benefit, not for that of the shippers and stakeholders.” “The hope was that the courts could appoint someone who could reorganize them, and turn them back over to the owners [to run consistently with the law].” Courts began employing receivership toward public matters following the Brown v. Board of Education decision declaring the “separate but equal” doctrine unconstitutional. Judges began mandating desegregation in noncompliant public schools during the racist southern backlash against integration, after a decade of voluntary compliance with Brown produced virtually no change in school competition. Receivership over prisons and jails starting in the 1970s grew out of those rulings, said Stroud. Swain’s decision marks just the 14th time a judge placed a correctional facility or system under receivership. Recent examples include the Miami-Dade County jail and medical care in California’s prisons. Ask and you shall receive To be clear, the Trump administration will not play a direct role in the city’s See RECEIVERSHIP on page 23

6 • December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS B E S T O F 2 0 2 5

One Long Island family’s hellish journey to foreclosure By ARIAMA C. LONG Amsterdam News Staff “My parents are seniors and now you’re putting them out of their home,” said Nina Greene, 44, a retired New York City Police Department (NYPD) police officer who is physically disabled from a line of duty injury. She worked with the city’s evidence collection team, a skillset that has proved useful in her battle to try and keep her family home. Despite her efforts, the Greene family has lost their years-long struggle to keep their house from foreclosure. Greene claimed that her parents were swept into a scam when they were unable to keep up with mortgage payments or get approved for a loan modification, and were summarily denied help from a long list of servicers that shuffled around the note to their mortgage. The housing courts disagreed and ruled in favor of the banks. Her father, Larry Greene (Larry G.), 76, a now-retired Port Authority officer, and her mother, Sherry Greene, 75, purchased a two-level multi-family home in Long Island for about $550,000 in 2007. They originally hailed from St. Albans, a mostly Caribbean and African neighborhood in Queens. The family decided to settle in Freeport, a similar village in Hempstead that is composed of predominantly middle- to uppermiddle-class Black and Hispanic households. In 2023, the median property value there was over $470,000, and the homeownership rate was about 70%, according to DataUSA. Jamael Romans, a Black loan officer at United Mortgage Corp. in Woodbury, Long Island, estimated that homes are probably going for well over $700,000 in that area now. “They have a good school district, so a lot of families want to be in that area,” said Romans. He added that Freeport, Baldwin, Hempstead, Uniondale, Elmont, and Westbury were all areas of middle- to upper-middle-class Black and Brown communities, but it’s also very competitive for first-time homebuyers to break into. Outside the Greene family home is a lavish tree with pinkish blossoms, and an angel figurine in the yard is shrouded in greenery. Greene doesn’t quite describe that kind of tranquility inside, though. In addition to her and her elderly parents, her brother, his wife, and his newborn daughter also lived in the house. Not to mention their four rescue dogs and one cat. Tranquil, it probably wasn’t — but it was theirs. The issues began with their original mortgage holder, Countrywide Financial, said Larry G., who was the main person in charge of making payments on the mortgage at the time. He was denied a loan modification when the company went under, and he had a new loan servicer. “When the crash came [in 2008], I got a notice that Bank of America would be taking over, so I started telling them that I wanted a new deal as far as the mortgage went, a lower interest rate, and they kept giving me the runaround,” he said. Since the housing market took an economic nosedive in 2008 at the behest of unscrupu-

The Greene house, a two-level multi-family home in Freeport, Long Island. (Photo contributed by Nina Greene)

lous companies, like Countrywide, the Greene family is far from alone in feeling the impact. According to the Center for Ethical Organizational Cultures at Auburn University, Countrywide was the largest provider of home loans in the U.S in the early 2000s. It was also the primary provider of home loans to minorities in the nation. The company’s expansive growth was due in large part to subprime loans, a lending method that ultimately led to its and the country’s downfall. Basically, a subprime loan relies on lending to low-income or non-traditionally qualified borrowers but charges them higher interest rates. One of the tools of these loans is an adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM), where payments may start out low but balloon to exorbitant amounts over time. Larry G. confirmed that he was paying only the interest on the mortgage, not the principal amount, for the first 10 years. “I didn’t realize, which I should have in the beginning, that the mortgage was a predatory type mortgage,” he said. Bank of America (BOA) offered to buy Countrywide for $4 billion in 2008 — an acquisition that outlets like NPR called “a never-ending legal and financial nightmare.” Countrywide was under numerous investigations, including from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), for misconduct and misrepresentation. In the midst of all that chaos, Larry G. wanted to contest the company’s legal right to his mortgage in court and had stopped making payments because he couldn’t get a muchneeded loan modification. In 2013, he went to court in Nassau County to find out who held the note on the mortgage. His total sum then was $417,000, according to court documents. Meanwhile, BOA’s Countrywide unit had been found liable for defrauding Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac that same year. The federal government had sought $864 million from BOA for losses from defective loans that Countrywide sold, but ended up with a massive settlement. Larry G.’s lawyer at the time said that BOA legally had five or six years to prove they held the mortgage and resolve the case. In the interim, the Greene family loan was assigned to a series

of other servicers, first to GreenTree Loan Servicing, another servicer whose parent company, Walter Investment Management Corp. (WAC), merged with another WAC subsidiary, Ditech Mortgage Corp, in 2014. Washington outlets reported in 2016 that GreenTree had failed to honor many of the loan modifications in place when BOA sold them loans, leaving people frustrated and in debt. The Greene family loan went to the U.S. Bank National Association, which had bought two of BOA’s securitization and trust businesses in 2010. Now it’s been with Rushmore Loan Management Services, LLC/Mr. Cooper, a registered service mark of Nationstar Mortgage LLC, since 2021, according to court documents. “Mortgages … don’t stay within the same company over the life of the loan. The money has to continuously circulate within the economy,” said Romans. “That’s just the way it goes. And a new servicer is gonna handle the mortgage, because typically mortgage companies don’t handle servicing. Servicing is in charge of paying the property taxes, the home insurance, the principal and interest. If you had a great loan officer, they would have an operations team, and they will always know who the servicer is being transferred to.” After years of back and forth, the Greenes were ruled against in their initial case and filed for appeal in 2019. The family kept trying to get a loan modification with each servicer and kept getting denied, they said. By 2020, the COVID-19 crisis had severely delayed all court proceedings. When they resumed, the payments the Greenes owed had snowballed. According to documents, they had to pay more than $900,000 ($962,283.15) with interest at the note rate from March 1, 2011, to July 30, 2022. This figure does not include additional court and attorney fees. The Greene family tried switching lawyers twice to file new motions and get a loan modification, but they were ultimately dismissed. They said they were told by Rushmore that they were short of qualifying for a loan modification by about $14 a month. Their home was foreclosed on and was set for the auction

block in December 2024. The court also ruled for the dismissal of any future arguments that could be made in the case. In a last-minute bid, Sherry G. decided to file for bankruptcy that month to stave off the auction until at least after the holidays. An auction can’t move forward until a bankruptcy case is concluded. “My mom thought this was her forever home,” said Greene. “She was just trying to do whatever she could do to hold it off, to see if we could find someone to help us, or whatever, and that didn’t pan out.” Greene also tried filing complaints with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), the New York State Attorney General’s office, and Senator Siela A. Bynoe’s office. “I think what happened is this problem was so widespread — trillions of dollars in mortgages throughout the country,” said Larry G. “And I think the problem with them holding everybody to the law is that it would have been such a huge economic blow that the courts stopped holding them to the letter of the law and people slipped through the cracks. And all the stuff I was hearing about, I imagine a lot of people just gave up and stopped fighting and maybe never even put up a fight.” The Greene family’s bankruptcy case wrapped up last month, and the auction date was resumed for June 30, 2025. To circumvent that, the Greene family opted for a short sale. Romans said a short sale is when a real estate broker comes in to work with the city to sell the home and negotiates a price, usually under value, to help relocate the occupants. These are more than likely cash buyers, which helps the house sell faster, he said. “If a mortgage has become unaffordable for a person, it’s best to reach out to the mortgage company and let them know that you’re going through a financial hardship and you want to at least place a forbearance on your mortgage, where they pause the mortgage payment for at least three months and it won’t negatively affect their credit score,” advised Romans. “Throughout that time, you can focus on a game plan, or you can split the mortgage in two and make a payment twice in a month, or do a loan modification.” Romans added that with foresight, the Greene family might have had an opportunity for a cash-out refinancing option. “Especially in this case — their home was in Long Island in the Freeport area. The homes are very high value,” he said. “If they were able to catch it in time and they knew they were tight on funds, they could’ve attempted to refinance, took out enough money that they needed to be able to get back in a more comfortable position.” BOA’s senior vice president of media relations confirmed via email that Amsterdam News’ inquiry was received and said that her team was “still investigating” the inquiry and couldn’t get an official statement by press time. In the interim, she pointed to the publicly available legal court documents for clarity. The media relations team Highwire Public Relations also confirmed receipt of the Amsterdam News inquiry via email, and said they were “looking into this” as well.

6 • April 17, 2025 - April 23, 2025

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS BTHE E NEW S TYORKOAMSTERDAM F 2 0NEWS 2 5

December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025 • 7

The legacy of Zero-Tolerance Part 1: How schools respond to students who carry guns

By By SHANNON SHANNON CHAFFERS CHAFFERS Amsterdam Amsterdam News News Staff, Staff, Report for Report forCorps America Corps Member America Member When JoshMarte Marte brought a gun his When Josh brought a gun to histocharcharter in Harlem ter high high schoolschool in Harlem halfway halfway through through the 10th he wasn’t the 10th grade, he grade, wasn’t thinking ofthinking the conof the consequences. Originally, he said, he sequences. Originally, he said, he planned to planned off to But a few friends. But show it offtotoshow a fewitfriends. when he heard when he heard somewere other students that some other that students planning to were planning to fight him, he decided fight him, he decided to show them the gun to in show them the into his backpack as a way his backpack asgun a way scare them off. toHe scare them off. still remembers the look on the He stillsecurity remembers the face look when on thehe school school guard’s dissecurity guard’s covered the gun.face when he discovered the gun.look on his face of disappointment “That “That onwe’re his face of disappointment was like,look ‘wow, about to lose a young was like, ‘wow, we’re about to loserecalled. a young man for something stupid,’” Marte man for something stupid,’” Marte recalled. After the incident, which occurred in 2008, After was the arrested incident, which occurred in Marte and expelled from the 2008, Marte was arrested and expelled from school. His charges were dismissed in exthe school. His chargesservice were dismissed change for community and a year in of exchange for community service and a year good behavior. He spent the rest of the year of behavior. school, He spent the rest of the at good an alternative before dropping year at an alternative school, before out entirely after the summer break.dropWith ping outunstructured, entirely afterhe the break. his days gotsummer more involved With his activity days unstructured, he got more in illegal in his neighborhood, and involved in illegal began selling drugs.activity By the in agehis of neighbor22, he was hood, and began selling drugs. By the age of arrested again. 22,“Not he was arrested again. being in school ... you become a target “Not being ... youcriminal becomeaca for people whoinareschool doing illegal, target for people who are doing illegal, tivities. [They] say, ‘since you’re not doing criminal [They]available, say, ‘since you’re anything,activities. or [since] you’re here, sell not doing anything, or [since] you’re availthis,’” he explained. able, here,story sell this,’” he explained. Marte’s is a familiar one in neighborMarte’s story a familiar one in neighhoods with highisrates of violence, where ilborhoods with high rates of violence, legal gun carrying is common amongwhere some illegal carrying is common among youth asgun a strategy for protection. But schools’ some youth as a strategy for protection. But response to students possessing a firearm at schools’ response to students possessing a school (without aiming or firing it) is often firearm at school aiming or firing criminalization and(without exclusion. it)This is often criminalization andthe exclusion. two-part series examines impact of This two-part series examines impact schools’ zero-tolerance response the to students of schools’ zero-tolerance response to stucarrying guns on campus, and the search for dents carrying guns on campus, and alternative responses that can ensure safe the ensearch for while alternative responses can vironments avoiding the harmsthat of excluensure safe environments while avoiding sionary discipline. the harms of exclusionary discipline. Why students carry guns Why students guns Marte says hecarry got the gun that he brought Marte says he got the gun that in hePennsylbrought to school from family members to school family members Pennsylvania andfrom began carrying it in hisinneighborvania began as carrying it in his neighborhood and in Harlem a way to protect himself hood in Harlemothers. as a way protect and intimidate Attothe time, himself he was and intimidate the time, he was skipping certainothers. classes At at school in order to skipping certain classes at school in order avoid interactions with kids from outside of to interactions with kids from outside hisavoid neighborhood. of“Where his neighborhood. I lived, there was up the hill and “Where I lived, was up the hill and down the hill, andthere there’s always rival gangs down the hill,even and[before] there’s always rival gangs that existed I was there. So if that existed even [before] I was So if you went outside, you would bethere. addressed you went members, outside, you would be by gang whether it addressed was from by gangyou members, it was from where lived, orwhether from [the] opposite where you lived, or from [the] opposite [side],” he explained. [side],” he explained. Carrying a gun gave Marte not just a feeling

Josh Marte was expelled for bringing a gun to his high school. He now works as a violence interrupter at Street Corner Resources, a violence prevention organization in Harlem. (Photo courtesy of Street Corner Resources)

Carrying a gun gave Marte not just a feel“If students had places in their school that Josh Marte was for bringing a gun to they his high Hehad now a violence ing of safety, but expelled of respect. feltschool. like they toworks avoid,as because they interrupter at Street a violence prevention organization in Harlem. “People know you asCorner a ‘gun Resources, boy.’ So they were uncomfortable going [there], or they (Photo courtesy you of Street Corner they Resources) don’t approach the same, don’t were worried about an interaction, that indeal with you the same… that’s the kind of creased their had likelihood of their carrying a gun. “People know you as a ‘gun boy.’ So they don’t “If students places in school that respect I think we just wanted. And it’s kind On the other side of the findings, if students approach you the same, they don’t deal with they felt like they had to avoid, because they of when you backofat it now. But felt in their school, they rarely or carried yousilly, the same… that’slook the kind respect I think weresafe uncomfortable going [there], they as kid, teenager, really fall when into that gun,” explained Sarah Britto, studythat co-auweajust wanted. And you it’s kind of silly, you a were worried about an interaction, inmindset,” heit said. andtheir a professor at California State look back at now. But as a kid, teenager, you thor creased likelihood of carrying a Unigun. A.T.fall Mitchell, of thehe Brooklyn-based versity, Dominguez really into thatCEO mindset,” said. On the other side of Hills. the findings, if students gun violence prevention nonprofit Man Up! felt Insafe addition feeling unsafe, research A.T. Mitchell, CEO of the Brooklyn-based in theirtoschool, they rarely carried a Inc, has seen young people act similarly. shows that youth who are members of gun violence prevention nonprofit Man Up! gun,” explained Sarah Britto, study co-author Recently, students in East street groups, oratwho are involved in selling Inc, has seentwo young peopleat actschools similarly. and a professor California State University, New York were caught with a gun. A 14-yeardrugs, might carry a gun to school to bolster Recently, two students at schools in East Dominguez Hills. old high school student was caught with a their reputation or to protect themselves. New York were caught with a gun. A 14-yearIn addition to feeling unsafe, research shows gun in theschool schoolstudent bathroom, an 8-year“Asyouth our study indicates, there are multiple old high was and caught with a that who are members of street groups, old was found with an unloaded gun at his reasons for students carrying guns, we gun in the school bathroom, and an 8-year- or who are involved in selling drugs, so might elementary school. expect a simple solution to solve old was found with an unloaded gun at his shouldn’t carry a gun to school to bolster their reputaIn both situations, Britto said. elementary school. Mitchell said, the stu- the tionproblem,” or to protect themselves. dents were showing off the gun as a way to Yet for years, the response to student gun In both situations, Mitchell said, the stu“As our study indicates, there are multimake afraid of has premised on guns, the idea of dents people were showing offthem. the gun as a way to carrying ple reasons forbeen students carrying so we “They don’t want to use it on anybody, a simple solution: zero-tolerance policies. make people afraid of them. shouldn’t expect a simple solution to solve the it’s“They not like they have to commit 1994, the federal don’t want to intent use it on anybody,any it’s In problem,” Britto said.government passed the harm orthey kill anybody, they just want people Schools (GFSA), not like have intent to commit any harm Gun-Free Yet for years, the Act response to which studentmangun to probably be afraid of them so that they dated that states pass legislation requiring or kill anybody, they just want people to prob- carrying has been premised on the idea of leave them alone,” heso explained. education agencies (in New York, this ably be afraid of them that they leave them local a simple solution: zero-tolerance policies. Feeling at school or in one’s neigh- includes both traditional public schools alone,” heunsafe explained. In 1994, the federal government passed the borhood a common reason youth gun and charter schools) to suspend Feeling is unsafe at school or infor one’s neighGun-Free Schools Act (GFSA), which students mandatcarrying, according to academics who have at least one yearlegislation for having a firearm on borhood is a common reason for youth gun for ed that states pass requiring local studied the issue. A new study based on a campus, and refer those students to law encarrying, according to academics who have education agencies (in New York, this includes survey recent high school graduAlthough have studied of the348 issue. A new study based on a forcement. both traditional publicadministrators schools and charter ates found that participants whograduates carried a the option modifystudents this suspension when survey of 348 recent high school schools) to to suspend for at least one gun in their neighborhood were morealikely individual cases, many and adopted found that participants who carried gun handling year for having a firearm on campus, refer to a gun to school, and thatlikely feeling zero-tolerance approach following the in bring their neighborhood were more to a those students to law enforcement. Although unsafe school or feeling the feeling need tounsafe avoid law’s passage, have making year-long suspenbring a at gun to school, and that administrators the a option to modify this certain within campus werecertain other sion the norm across the country. at schoolplaces or feeling the need to avoid suspension when handling individual cases, significant predictors for gun carrying. The adopted passageaof the GFSA coincided places within campus were other significant many zero-tolerance approachwith fol-

the wave ofthe “tough onacross crime” policies under suspension norm the country. President Bill Clinton. As fear of violence The passage of the GFSA coincided with andwave crime with politicians and the the ofspread, “tough on crime” policies under media fueling panic about theofupcoming President Bill Clinton. As fear violence generation of so-called “superpredators,” and crime spread, with politicians and the lawmakers designed policies used media fueling panic about the that upcoming incarceration remove“superpredators,” those deemed generation of to so-called threatening.designed These policies targeted lawmakers policiesoften that used inpoor, Black,to and Brown Americans. carceration remove those deemed threatDecoteau a professor University of ening. TheseIrby, policies often at targeted poor, Illinois Chicago, co-authored a study that Black, and Brown Americans. examined context that led to Decoteauthe Irby,political a professor at University of Ilthe GFSA’s passage, as well as its long-term linois Chicago, co-authored a study that examimpacts. ined the political context that led to the GFSA’s “All of as these anti-gang type meapassage, wellmostly as its long-term impacts. sures, War on Drugs-type measures “All of these mostly anti-gang type evenmeatually War creptoninto and found their way into, sures, Drugs-type measures eventufirst, around schools, and then actually into ally crept into and found their way into, first, school settings,” he explained. around schools, and then actually into school Although the GFSA’s stated purpose was settings,” he explained. toAlthough reduce school gun violence, there is little the GFSA’s stated purpose was to evidence that gun the law has had anyisdeterrent reduce school violence, there little evieffect.that In fact, thehas number gun violence dence the law had anyof deterrent effect. incidents at schools has increased in recent In fact, the number of gun violence incidents years. In has addition, theinGFSA at schools increased recentencouraged years. In adschools to adopt zero-tolerance policies for dition, the GFSA encouraged schools to adopt more minor infractions, leading to a steep zero-tolerance policies for more minor infracincrease in school suspension even as tions, leading to a steep increase rates, in school susjuvenile violent crime rates declined sharppension rates, even as juvenile violent crime ly after 1994. sharply By 2015, the1994. suspension rates declined after By 2015,rate the across the country had fromdouthe suspension rate across thedoubled country had 1970s, and Black students were three times bled from the 1970s, and Black students were moretimes likelymore thanlikely white students to be susthree than white students to pended or expelled. be suspended or expelled. At the the same sametime, time,the thenumber numberofofpolice policeoffiofAt ficers schools increased, meaning cers inin schools increased, meaning moremore stustudents who misbehaved came condents who misbehaved came intointo contact tact with the criminal system. Studies with the criminal legal legal system. Studies have have shown that increasing signs of shown that increasing visiblevisible signs of secusecurity, like adding metal detectors or inrity, like adding metal detectors or increascreasing presence, had on an ing policepolice presence, has not has had not an effect effect on crime at school. crime at school.

The harm harm caused caused by by exclusionary exclusionarydiscipline discipline The Mitchell expressed his concerns about the the Mitchell expressed his concerns about effectivenessofofa aone-year one-year suspension effectiveness suspension as aas re-a response to firearm possession at school. sponse to firearm possession at school. “I know knowthis thisisis looked at from a case-by“I looked at from a case-by-case case basis, but it’s excessive me,” he“Isaid. basis, but it’s excessive to me,”tohe said. can “I can understand that there’s certain parunderstand that there’s certain parents who ents be who maybecause… be fearful, because… they may fearful, they may not want may kids not to want kids to Ibe danger. their be intheir danger. [But] justinthink that [But]a Icry just [it’s] forthink help.”that [it’s] a cry for help.” “It’s catastrophic,” agreed Johanna “It’s catastrophic,” agreed Johanna Miller, Miller, directorofofthe theEducation Education Policy Center at director Policy Center at the the NYCLU. “If a student is a danger to NYCLU. “If a student is a danger to themselves themselves or someone else, youkid need to or someone else, you need to get that some get that kid some help and make sure they help and make sure they can’t hurt anybody. can’tthat’s hurtmore anybody. Butemergency that’s more like an But like an response emergency response than awhich yearlong susthan a yearlong suspension, is much pension, which is much past when past when the emergency has happened.” the emergency has happened.” Randi Weingarten, president of the AmeriRandi Weingarten, president thefeels American Federation of Teachers, saidofshe the can Federation of Teachers, said she feels GFSA should be revisited, explaining thatthe “a on page 11 suspensionSee for ZERO-TOLERANCE a year outside of school is not

8 • December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS I N M E M O R I A M

Actor Malcolm-Jamal Warner dies in tragic drowning By LOIS ELFMAN Special to the AmNews While his acting credits are very current, Malcolm-Jamal Warner is best known for his role as Theo Huxtable in “The Cosby Show,” whom he portrayed from ages 14 to 22 during the show’s long run. Warner, 54, died on Sunday while on a family vacation in Costa Rica. The cause of death was accidental drowning, and the Costa Rican National Police said he died from asphyxia. Born on August 18, 1970 in Jersey City, New Jersey, Warner was named after Malcolm X and jazz pianist Ahmad Jamal. After showing an interest in acting, his parents enrolled him in a performing arts school in New York City. According to Variety, he auditioned for the role of Theo as part of NBC’s nationwide search, and Cosby personally selected him for the role. For decades, “The Cosby Show” was seen as a cultural touchstone, depicting an affluent Black family with two parents who were professionals living in a brownstone in Brooklyn. The praise of the show dimmed after multiple allegations of sexual assault were made against star Bill Cosby, but Warner’s appreciation for Cosby’s impact remained. In a 2015 interview in Billboard, Warner said, “What [Bill Cosby has] done for comedy and television has been legendary and history-making. What he’s done for the Black com-

munity and education has been invaluable.” Through a representative, Cosby said news of Warner’s death hit him like the death of his son Ennis in 1997. He noted that Ennis and Warner would hang out and “were amazing together.” Having been part of such a series gave Warner a life of impact. “Malcolm-Jamal Warner was an inspiring TV sibling to countless Black youth and me,” said Dr. Shaun Harper, a professor of education, public policy, and business at the University of Southern California. “In his ‘Cosby Show’ role, Warner portrayed adolescence in ways that were familiar, affirming, and entertaining.” Podcaster/content creator Brooke Ashley grew up watching “The Cosby Show” reruns and found the Huxtables similar to her family. “One of my absolute favorite episodes is ‘A Shirt Story’ when Denise attempted to recreate the designer shirt for Theo,” said Ashley. “That infamous scene when Theo wears the messed up creation of the Gordon Gartrelle shirt will forever live rent free in my brain. Malcolm-Jamal Warner made Theo Huxtable an icon; he was everyone’s favorite brother.” Following his role as Theo, Warner continued to act. He appeared in the sitcom “Malcolm and Eddie” for four seasons followed by the BET sitcom “Reed Between the Lines.” From 2018-23, he was a cast member of the medical drama “The Resident.” His most recent television credits are “Alert: Missing Persons Unit” and “9-1-1.”

Former U.S. Congressman Charles B. Rangel, dies at 94 By HERB BOYD Special to the AmNews Charles Bernard Rangel, the former congressman from Harlem and the last remaining founder of the Congressional Black Caucus, has died at age 94. Rangel passed away on Monday, May 26, Memorial Day, surrounded by family. He was a native of Harlem and the lone surviving member of the legendary Gang of Four. He took his reputation as the “Lion of Lenox Avenue” to the House of Representatives in 1971 after defeating the renowned Rev. Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. The apogee of his tenure in Congress was in 2007 when he became chair of the House Ways and Means Committee. In his autobiography, Rangel claimed he never had a bad day since he survived an attack by the Chinese and the North Korean armies when he served in the Korean War, “but it doesn’t mean I haven’t had some heartbreaking experiences,” he wrote, particularly noting the loss of his brother. “Setbacks I’ve had; but bad days, no.” “Charlie was a transformative leader, he used his political position to elevate the people he represented. He was accessible and always available to anyone who came

to him for assistance. He demonstrated that political figures could be honorable and serve as great examples for young people to follow. From Harlem, he made his mark on the country. He will always be remembered as a warrior for justice and equality,” said former NYS State Comptroller H. Carl McCall in a statement to the AmNews. Former Assemblymember Keith Wright told the AmNews that Rangel was a “political genius and a personal role model. The Harlem community, the state, and the nation are fortunate to have had Charlie Rangel in our lives. His legacy is cemented in perpetuity.” During an interview with The HistoryMakers in 2018, Rangel recounted his early years coming of age on the streets of Harlem. “I came up from nothing,” he said, “I was a fatherless high school dropout with a gift of living by my wits and hiding my inadequacies behind bravado.” At the age of 22, he said, “I was pushing a hand truck in the gutters of New York’s garment district for a living...Yet somehow, by age 30, I had acquired three degrees in six years and was a newly minted See CHARLES B. RANGEL on page 24

From the Sept. 19, 1987 issue of the AmNews.

Ashley was a BET intern in the PR department when “Reed Between the Lines” was premiering. “During the press run, he was always lovely and down to earth,” she said. “The sudden passing of Malcolm-Jamal Warner is a tremendous loss and I want to send his family and friends my deepest condolences.” Celebrities have taken to social media to express their sorrow and their admiration. Warner’s “Malcolm and Eddie” co-star, Eddie Griffin, posted to Instagram: “My Heart is heavy today… For what the world lost was a Father, a Son, a Poet, a Musician, a[n] Actor, a Teacher, a Writer, a Director, a Friend, [and] a Warrior that I had the pleasure of going to

war with against the Hollywood machine and sometimes with each other because that’s what Brothers do but the Love was and is always there. You’ve taught me so much and I thank you. Rest Well My Big little Brother.” Tracee Ellis Ross also took to Instagram to voice a tribute. “I love you, Malcolm. First I met you as Theo with the rest of the world, then you were my first TV husband. My heart is so so sad. What an actor and friend you were: warm, gentle, present, kind, thoughtful, deep, funny, elegant. You made the world a brighter place. Sending so much love to your family. I’m so sorry for this unimaginable loss.” Warner was also a musical artist — winning a Grammy in 2015 for Best Traditional R&B performance — a writer, and a director. Last year, he launched a podcast, “Not All Hood,” with Weusi Baraka and Candace Kelley, where they discussed Black masculinity, mental health and media representation. “When we talk about the Black community, we tend to speak of it as a monolith when the reality is there are so many different facets of the Black community, and we wanted to have a space where we can really explore, discuss and acknowledge all of those different aspects,” Warner told People. “His impact on Black culture will endure forever,” said Harper. Warner is survived by his wife and daughter. He preferred to keep their names private and they had not yet been identified at press time.

‘What’s Happening’ star Danielle Spencer dies at age 60

FLO

ANTHONY GO WITH THE FLO Dr. Danielle Spencer, who portrayed the spunky, annoying little sister Dee on the ‘70s sitcom “What’s Happening” and ‘80s sequel “What’s Happening Now,” passed away on August 11 in Richmond, Virginia, at the age of 60. Her former castmate and longtime friend Haywood Nelson shared the sad news on social media. Spencer’s mother, Cheryl, and brother Jimmy Pelt, a jazz musician, were by her side. Spencer’s death came after longtime health issues that she experienced for most of her life. During the second season of “What’s Happening,” the actress, at the age of 11, was involved in a severe auto accident in Malibu, CA on the Pacific Coast Highway that killed her stepfather, Timothy Pelt. For many years she was unable to walk; however, she overcame her disabilities and later became a veterinarian. Spencer also battled cancer for many years, becoming an advocate for those

affected by the disease until, sadly, succumbing to it. “We have lost a daughter, sister, family member. Our Shero Danielle is loved. She will be missed in this form and forever embraced,” shared Nelson from his IG account….. Jennifer Hudson departed from an action-packed few days at the Martha’s Vineyard African American Film Festival in Massachusetts to jet to Atlanta where the EGOT (Emmy/Grammy/ Oscar/Tony) winner celebrated the late Whitney Houston at The Whitney Houston Legacy of Love Gala on August 9 at the St. Regis Hotel. The 9th would have been Houston’s 62nd birthday. The evening was hosted by “Entertainment Tonight”’s Kevin Frazier, and Pat Houston, president of The Whitney Houston Legacy Foundation and executor of The Estate of Whitney E. Houston….. We hear … Former First Lady Michelle Obama also chimed in at the Martha’s Vineyard African American Film Festival where she spoke onstage during Higher Ground’s IMO with Michelle Obama & Craig Robinson podcast. This was recorded on August 9. Former President Barack Obama and Michelle own a home on Martha’s Vineyard….

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS I N M E M O R I A M

December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025 • 9

Harlem mourns the great Dr. Hazel N. Dukes

Dr. Hazel N. Dukes (Bill Moore photos)

By ARIAMA C. LONG Amsterdam News Staff Dr. Hazel Nell Dukes, civil rights activist and president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) New York State Conference, has died at 92. She had reportedly been battling an illness toward the end of her life and died Saturday, Mar. 1, 2025. The announcement was made by Dukes’s son, Ronald. “It is with profound sadness that I announce the passing of my mother, Dr. Hazel Nell Dukes, at 92 years of age,” he said in a statement. “Mom departed this life peacefully on the morning of March 1, 2025, surrounded by her loving family. Mom was a committed civil rights leader in New York City and the nation, and worked tirelessly on the frontlines almost to the end. We find comfort in knowing that while she’s no longer with us physically but resting in the bosom of Jesus. Funeral service details will be forthcoming. Kindly keep our family in your prayers.” Dukes was a dynamic leader and a Harlem legend who worked behind the scenes in New York and national politics for decades, although she never

wanted to run for office. Born in Montgomery, Ala., in 1932, Dukes was the only child of Edward and Alice Dukes. Her father was a Pullman porter and active in the first all-Black railroad union, organized by civil rights activist A. Philip Randolph, in the deeply segregated South. She and her family lived in the Graetz neighborhood of Montgomery, which would eventually be known as the former home of civil rights icon Rosa Parks. Her parents’ families were both involved in education. Dukes had thought she’d be a teacher, even enrolling at Alabama State Teachers College in 1949 for a year. Her family ended up moving to New York in 1955 and she attended Nassau Community College on Long Island. While there, she got involved with tenant and community organizing through the Economic Opportunity Commission (EOC) of Nassau County in the town of Roslyn in N. Hempstead. In the 1960s, Dukes was appointed by former President Lyndon Johnson to his Head Start early childhood education program — one of the oldest and largest programs of its kind. In 1966, she became the first Black person to hold a position in the Nassau County Attorney’s Office.

She eventually received a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Adelphi University in New York and completed postgraduate work at Queens College. Dukes also had a huge impact on Harlem. She was a former chair of Manhattan Community Board 10, deeply involved with the Harlem Arts Alliance, and an active leader in the Greater Harlem Chamber of Commerce. She was a champion of the arts; supported Black-owned businesses and economic empowerment; and was laser-focused on closing racial disparities in medical care in Black and underserved communities. Dukes’s accomplishments and awards received over the course of her lifetime are vast, including the Ellis Island Medal of Honor, YWCA City of New York John La Farge Memorial Award for Interracial Justice, Guy R. Brewer Humanitarian Award, 2007 “Network Journal” 25 Most Influential Black Women in Business Award, and a Proclamation at the New York City Council’s Third Annual Martin Luther King, Jr. award. Dukes received the key to the city from former Mayor Bill de Blasio in 2020, was a Greater Harlem Chamber of Commerce 125th Anniversary Gala honoree

in 2023, and made history by becoming the first civilian person in the United States to administer the oath of office to a governor — Kathy Hochul, New York State’s first female governor. She was especially proud of that. City and state leaders shared their condolences and memories of Dukes, whom many affectionately referred to in the Black community as “Ma Dukes.” “It is with profound sadness that I learned of the passing of my dear friend and mentor, Dr. Hazel Dukes. For over 40 years, Ma Dukes has been an unwavering presence in my life — a trusted advisor, a cherished friend, and a guiding light during some of my most challenging times,” said Mayor Eric Adams in a statement. “I will remember Ma Dukes for her remarkable ability to bring people together. Whether in times of crisis or celebration, she could fill a room with her commanding presence yet make everyone feel heard and valued. Her wisdom, compassion, and straight-talking spirit made her a mother figure not just to me, but to several generations of leaders and community members throughout our city who were her ‘children.’” In her honor, Adams ordered all flags on all city buildings, as well

as stationary flagstaffs throughout the five boroughs, to be lowered to half-staff on Saturday. “I’m saddened to hear of the passing of my true friend, sister, and friend for more than 40 years, Hazel Dukes. She was a force of nature for justice and an activist of the highest order. She made a difference, and we will forever be indebted to her,” said Rev. Al Sharpton, founder and president of the National Action Network (NAN). “I spoke to her by phone just two days ago. We will never have another Hazel Dukes, but I am grateful that we had this one.” Assemblymember Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn, who heads the Brooklyn County Dems party, said she knew “Mama Dukes” as a fellow sorority sister of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. and a mentor. “... She was a guiding light who inspired the next generation of leaders working towards a fairer future,” said Hermelyn. “Dr. Dukes was a forefront of the Civil Rights Movement; serving for decades as a champion for justice, and a fierce advocate for civil rights. Her powerful voice for change will live on. May she rest in peace.” For the full story, amsterdamnews.com

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10 • December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

Zero-tolerance Continued from page 7

GFSA should be revisited, explaining that “a suspension for a year outside of school is not an appropriate suspension anyway, because it means that we’re saying that the kid is never coming back to school.” But she emphasized that “there has to be consequences to behavior like having a gun in school. And what we need to do is make sure that there are alternatives that will long-term help kids.” Recent research has confirmed the adverse consequences of exclusionary discipline. Studies have shown that the use of suspension increases students’ likelihood of future suspension, and is also linked to lower graduation rates and an increased likelihood of contact with the criminal legal system. This phenomenon is known as the school-to-prison pipeline. “Schools and the exclusionary discipline process sort of serves as a launchpoint for youth eventually entering and making their way into the criminal justice system,” said Luis Rodriguez, a professor at New York University who studies school discipline. In addition, there is a lack of evidence that suspensions accomplish the stated goals of deterring students from engaging in certain behavior, or improving the learning environment for other students. “All of the ideas about how suspensions are going to change behavior or act as a deterrent are grounded in outdated ideas about how adolescents and teenagers make decisions and how their brains work. I’m very skeptical that they can be effective in any way, both as a deterrent and changing behavior,” said Rachel Perera, a research fellow at the Brookings Institution who studies school discipline. In fact, reports from the U.S. Department of Education indicate that in recent years, some school districts have been using more discretion when responding to students caught with a firearm. The Department of Education suggested in their reports that this shift, which they began noting in their report on the 2017–18 school year, is in line with a trend of schools seeking alternatives to exclusionary discipline due to growing evidence about the harms of suspension and racial inequities in their application. It is unclear how this trend has impacted the response to firearm possession at New York City’s schools. Both the New York State Department of Education and New York City Department of Education (DOE) emphasized that they treat every incident of firearm possession on a case-by-case basis. “While that is the expectation that a student with ill intent in possession of a firearm is subject to a one year suspension, each and every one of our cases are looked at as an individual case and we treat them as such,” said Mark Rampersant, Chief of Safety and Prevention Partnerships at New

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS B E S T O F 2 0 2 5 York City’s Department of Education (DOE). Marte said his alternative school felt like New York City’s DOE does not report data “preparation for jail.” on the number of students caught with a “You couldn’t come in with your own penfirearm at school who receive a modified cils or pens. Couldn’t wear certain belts… suspension. But the DOE’s annual suspen- You almost weren’t expected to do homesion reports shows that the number of stu- work, because they didn’t want you to take dents receiving a long-term suspension books and other items in or outside the for “possessing or using a firearm, bomb, school,” he said. or other explosive” was 41 in the 2021-22 He also felt that concentrating students school year, 35 in 2022-23, and 63 in 2023-24 with histories of misbehavior in one place (these totals don’t include charter schools). led to that behavior being reinforced. Even as Rampersant acknowledged that “It was one big macho challenge, like who “there is no evidence that suspensions was the baddest kid in the school. Everybody work, for anything,” he defended the one- was trying to top each other with disrespect year suspensions the DOE does give out for towards teachers, top each other with disrefirearm possession. spect towards each other,” he recalled. “We would like to think that a one-year After the year ended, Marte decided to suspension is a deterrent to carrying a drop out, because he didn’t want to go back firearm or possessing a firearm on school into that type of environment. property… [So] we agree that it interrupts Miller said that dropping out rather the educational process, but so does a fire- than attending an alternative school is a arm in a school,” he said. common response. “I think when a kid makes a big big misThe impact of suspensions on students take like that, very often the systems just Students in New York City who are serv- kind of give up on them. And in fact, those ing long-term suspensions are still entitled are the kids that you probably need to put to an education, in accordance with New the most into to bring them back and make York state law. Where that education takes sure that they don’t end up in the criminal place depends on each student’s individu- legal system as an adult. Once you’re in the al situation. juvenile justice system, it’s sadly almost inA student who is arrested and determined evitable that you will end up in the adult to have been in possession of a firearm may criminal justice system exactly for that be incarcerated at a juvenile detention center reason — because we sort of give up on or Rikers Island, depending on their age. They those kids,” Miller said. may also be released on probation or under Mark Rampersant of the NYC Department certain conditions. Students who are sus- of Education defended the learning centers, pended but not incarcerated after their initial arguing that it is a student’s responsibility to arrest are assigned to one of the city’s long- make the most of their time there. term Alternate Learning Centers. Those who “It is incumbent upon the student to really remain in detention continue their education put the investment in. The adults are there at juvenile detention facilities. to provide the supports. All you have to do is Abby Levites worked as a social worker at show up and be willing and ready to learn… Passages Academy, the school that is based For other young people who are not taking in juvenile detention centers. There, she the suspension process seriously, you’ll hear encountered multiple students who were some of [those criticisms],” he said. incarcerated because they had brought a He also noted that students can have their weapon to school. What she saw were stu- suspension length reduced if they are on dents that needed more support, not fur- track with their attendance and academic ther punishment. performance. “Working with these kids, I’ve never once Still, research has shown that New York been like, ‘I’m in danger, this kid is bad.’ City students who are suspended for more They’re kids, they’re young people, they’re than 21 days were less likely than peers with dealing with things that people don’t under- shorter suspensions to earn credits in math stand and may never have gone through in and English classes, and were less likely to their lives. And if they’ve brought a weapon to graduate on time. school, there might be a reason for it, whether “It really sets you back a full year, because it was well thought out or not. And this whole there’s just no way to compare the educaidea of how much we criminalize these young tion you would receive at your home school people is just devastating,” she said. versus the education you’re receiving at an This punitive response can also result in alternative learning center,” said Michaela students falling behind due to the academ- Shuchman, a Skadden legal fellow at Bronx ic disruption. Students and advocates have Legal Services working to reform and recriticized the quality of education provided place exclusionary discipline practices in at some of these Alternate Learning Centers. NYC schools. “They’re a mixed bag,” Johanna Miller of Students who do choose to continue the NYCLU explained. “Some of them are their education after serving a suspension really interesting places where I think the rarely go back to their original school, Leveducators are trying to do a really good job ites said. of helping get the kids back into their class“The majority of these kids don’t want to room, and helping them get back sooner. go back to their home schools because that’s But for the most part, in many cases, they’re where stuff was happening. They might have a little bit like purgatory for kids, where you gotten arrested in front of everybody, there don’t really make much progress.” might be beef still, they might hate their

December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025 • 11

An alternate educational complex in Manhattan. (Photo by Shannon Chaffers)

teachers. I’ve called [some schools], and the administration has been like, ‘we don’t want that kid back here,’” she explained. Instead, these students may choose to attend one of the DOE’s 56 transfer schools, which are designed for students who need to make up credits. Levites now works at one of these transfer schools, Judith S. Kaye School, which she says gives more support to struggling students. “It’s just a whole different kind of experience that really every high school should be. Smaller classes, [and] more supportive staff,” she said. But she said that many transfer schools suffer from understaffing and are at risk of losing funding if they don’t maintain enrollment numbers each year. Reflecting on the legacy of the GFSA, Decoteau Irby said that the spirit of the law, to keep guns out of school, should be preserved. But he posited that we need a “radical reimagining” of “what happens when someone feels like they can’t uphold the value, or can’t uphold the commitment to not have guns in a particular type of space.” The second part of this series will examine what alternatives to the current system of discipline could look like. Shannon Chaffers is a Report for America corps member and writes about gun violence for the Amsterdam News. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep her writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by visiting https://bit.ly/amnews1.

12 • December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

Photographer Malcolm Pinckney hits 50 years of capturing NYC’s greenest spaces Black

New Yorker

Photographer Malcolm Pinckney (Photo courtesy of New York City Department of Parks & Recreation)

By TANDY LAU Amsterdam News Staff Photographer Malcolm Pinckney credits his morning green tea for motivating him as he recently reached 50 years since he started snapping and shooting for the NYC Department of Parks & Recreation (NYC Parks). Oh, and also a love for the job. “To be good at anything, be the best of anything, you have to live and sleep it and eat it,” he told the AmNews. Pinckney was born in a segregated South Carolina, but later arrived in New York City, attending his first integrated school in Brooklyn before enrolling at the now-defunct Haaren High on 59th Street. There, he became curious about how an image could appear on paper and later studied photography, but boasted an initial interest in electronics. He originally repaired broken

TVs and radios for “little old ladies,” but ultimately pivoted. “The industry was changing from vacuum tubes to transistors [and] the courses didn’t match up with what I learned in high school,” said Pinckney. “So I made the switch totally to photography, and from there that really helped me propel into a job doing photography in parks.” Back in 1975, Pinckney started out in the Bronx where he worked in the City Department of Parks & Recreation. As Pinckney’s photos developed, so did he. “It was a godsend, because I had actually a darkroom to work out of and hone my skills,” he said. “And while I was taking courses, it actually helped me get the grades that I did get.” Taking some breaks in between, including running his own business and working as a park ranger, Pinckney ultimately came back in 1985. The rest was history, quite

literally. Pinckney is responsible for officially capturing New York City throughout the years from Mayor David Dinkins to the Fort Tryon Park honeybees. Few days go by without someone reaching out, hoping he captured a tender moment or lost memory from one of the city’s more than 1,700 green spaces. “People don’t understand why documentation is so important to record history as it happens,” said Pinckney. “In this job, especially here at parks, somebody’s always calling for something that happened years ago, they might have had their newborn at that event, and they want to see if we have a picture [or] to go back and look at what life was like back then. That type of thing.” As camera technology evolved over the decades, Pinckney remained abreast thanks to his past electronics background. He recalls seeing digital photos from the

fall of the Berlin Wall back when film was the standard. “Time went by and different administrations change, and the need got greater,” said Pinckney. “We were able to purchase decent digital cameras so we could be equal [to] private industry.” Today, he is a husband, dad, and grandfather. The apple doesn’t fall from the tree: his daughter is a videographer and his son is a parkie, as well as a musician. And his wife serves as commissioner of Mt. Vernon’s Recreation Department. But photography still remains much of Pinckney’s life after all these years. Beyond his NYC Parks work, he has also snapped freelance for a laundry list of publications and institutions including for the AmNews. When asked about what else he does outside of photography, he cracks a laugh. “Not much,” Pinckney said. “Photography is all I do.”

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025 • 13

Opinion Will Mayor-elect Mamdani’s New Era strengthen NYC’s workforce or continue to exclude disabled New Yorkers?

The setbacks and cracks in Trump’s march toward total domination of the American experience, past and present, hit a few bumps recently, but hardly enough to halt his steamroller of change and extermination. We cheered the news that California’s governor, Gavin Newsom, has hired two former leaders of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, both of whom accused the Trump administration of abandoning scientific standards. Our thumbs went up when a Wisconsin judge ruled that there was sufficient evidence for trials against two men charged with illegal attempts to keep Trump in power after his defeat in the 2020 election. And the coup de grâce arrived when a longstanding practice halted Trump’s attempt to install his preferred prosecutors in states represented by Democrats. In effect, Republicans have defied him, thereby allowing Democrats to block his appointments. Whether this bad news will exacerbate his dipping approval ratings or alert his crumbling base is an outcome we await. The crack in his support wall and the chink in his armor, may be a call to arms, arousing his slumbering MAGA adherents. To be sure, there is clearly alarm in his rank and file, and we hope that the Democratic army is equally alert and prepared to widen some of the splits and separations among his once-loyal followers, particularly as polls indicate a downward trend for Trump. But, once again, you know how unpredictable the political barometer is from day to day. Even so, any weakness from the Trump quarter must be taken advantage of as we march ineluctably toward the 2026 midterm election.

Before City Hall or the Public Advocate talks about “Diverse Entrepreneurial Inclusion,” let’s start with the receipts: disabled people are not only a core part of New York’s workforce and small-business ecosystem — we literally invented much of the modern workplace technology the city depends on. Disabled Americans control over $490 billion in disposable income, making the disability economy one of the most powerful consumer and entrepreneurial markets in the country. Globally, disabled communities influence an estimated $8 trillion. By 2034, younger people will be outnumbered by older individuals who have a higher rate of disabilities. We don’t just go to doctors. As a GenXer, I assure you we fought for our right to party and that will not stop because of a few challenges that we can create new products and services to continue partying like it was 1999 well into our golden years. Ignoring disability in workforce development strategy is not a small oversight — it is economic malpractice.

EDITORIAL

Lots of bad news for Trump, but not enough!

Member

Alliance for Audited Media

By MARC SAFMAN

A Public Advocate Report on “Diverse Inclusion” That Doesn’t Include Disability? The Public Advocate’s Diverse Entrepreneurial Inclusion report repeatedly references equity for minority- and women-owned firms — yet disability is missing from every major section, including background, recommendations, opportunity pathways, procurement analysis, and workforce alignment. Not one policy recommendation for MWBEs includes disability. Elinor R. Tatum: Publisher Not one data table and Editor in Chief tracks disability. Madison Gray: Executive & Investigative Editor Only in the concluDamaso Reyes: Editor at Large sion does the report Kristin Fayne-Mulroy: Managing Editor finally acknowledge Cyril Josh Barker: Digital Editor that “minorities and Siobhan "Sam" Bennett: women, along with Chief Revenue Officer and Head of Advertising people with disabilWilbert A. Tatum (1984-2009): ities, have historiChairman of the Board, CEO and Publisher Emeritus cally faced systemic

Treating disability like a footnote erases the reality that disabled women and disabled people of color exist across every demographic the M/WBE program is supposed to serve. employment discrimination.” A single boilerplate reference in the conclusion of a report from the Public Advocate’s office is not effective policymaking. When 98% of NYC’s businesses are small businesses with less than 100 employees, ignoring the criticality of disability’s intersectional concerns and solutions is the recipe for ineffective policymaking. Accessibility needs to be recognized as a core pillar of policymaking. Treating Disabled New Yorkers as an afterthought creates barriers to impactful and positive outcomes for everyone. Treating disability like a footnote erases the reality that disabled women and disabled people of color exist across every demographic the M/WBE program is supposed to serve. The omission reinforces a false narrative that “disability” is separate from race, gender, and immigrant identity — when in fact disability is intersectional by definition. This is how systems quietly exclude us. Not through hostility — through benevolent omission, erasure, and policy silence. Disability has always driven innovation — Long before the city government noticed If policymakers took the time to understand accessibility, they would know disability is

not a burden. It is the engine of innovation. Blind Innovation → Typewriter → Keyboard → Every Modern Workforce Tool In the early 1800s, Italian inventor Pellegrino Turri built one of the first typewriters for his partner, a blind woman, Countess Carolina Fantoni. Her need for independent communication ignited a design lineage that produced: typewriters to keyboards to computers to smartphones to digital work culture. The modern workplace owes its existence to love and disability access innovation. Deaf Innovation → Early Electronic Messaging → Email & Real-Time Text Deaf communities pioneered TTY systems, relay technology, early electronic messaging, and real-time text — decades before mainstream email existed. Workforce communication today is built on Deaf innovation — period. Why did disabled people invent these tools? Because we live in a world not made for us. When the world excludes you, you innovate to survive. Accessibility is not a nice add-on. It is creative problem-solving forged in sys-

temic exclusion. Disabled people constantly: • Hack inaccessible systems. • Invent workarounds. • Create new tools. • Generate user-centered design. • Adapt environments not designed for us These are the exact qualities NYC claims to value in its workforce of the future: resilience, adaptability, creativity, systems thinking, UX intelligence, and innovation. Disabled workers embody all of them — because we had no other choice. Ensuring Authentic Representation of Disabled Persons is the Only Way to Design Impactful Policies When the Public Advocate releases an M/WBE report that erases disability, when transition committees have only token representation, when the incoming mayor’s resume portal doesn’t even request disability knowledge, NYC’s New Era is signaling — “Disabled New Yorkers are not part of the economic future we are planning.” But the truth is the opposite: Disabled New Yorkers are entrepreneurs. Disabled New Yorkers drive consumer spending. Disabled New Yorkers are at the center of racial, gender, and immigrant identity. You cannot build a New Era without us. You cannot claim inclusion while deleting disability from the data table. You cannot modernize M/WBE policy while ignoring DOBEs. You cannot talk about workforce innovation while erasing the innovators. If NYC wants a future-ready economy, it must recognize what history already proves: disability is not a liability. Disabled New Yorkers are a competitive advantage. Marc Safman, Founder of Safman Consulting, uses his life experience as a DeafBlind Black man to help businesses and policy makers recognize the competitive advantages of Accessibility’s intersectional solutions to create and expand opportunities for everyone.

14 • December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS O P I N I O N

Stop criminalizing compassion: Gov. Hochul must veto S929 By BISHOP JOHNNY RAY YOUNGBLOOD For generations, New York’s faith communities have stood as first responders to the human spirit. In sanctuaries, fellowship halls, and basement meeting rooms, neighbors have found refuge. They have turned to clergy not only for prayer but for counsel, for comfort, for the kind of care that sees the whole person. This sacred work rests on trust, the trust that what is spoken in confidence will remain in confidence, and that dignity will be honored without judgment. Privacy, let us be clear, is not merely a legal matter. It is a moral covenant. Every child of God deserves assurance that the tender places of their lives will be protected — whether they seek help from a physician, therapist, pastor, rabbi, imam or other spiritual adviser. That is why I affirm the original intent behind S929. In the wake of the Supreme Court’s Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision in 2022 — which overturned Roe v. Wade and stripped away federal protections for reproductive rights — advocates rightly raised alarms about how digital data could be weaponized against people seeking care. S929 was introduced in the 2025–2026 legislative session to expand protections for health-related data collected outside HIPAA’s reach. Its goal was righteous: to stop tech platforms, retailers, and other non-medical entities from turning private struggles into public commodities. But good intentions, however noble, are not enough. The legislative process was unusually swift. S929 was introduced and passed by both chambers on January 22, 2025, then delivered to Gov. Kathy Hochul without public hearings or extended stakeholder input. Unlike Washington State’s My Health My Data Act, which took months of testimony from privacy experts, re-

productive justice advocates, and community organizations, New York’s bill advanced without a comparable deliberative process. That speed left clergy, nonprofits, and small providers without a voice. My brothers and sisters, let us tell the truth plainly: S929, though clothed in good intention, carries a burden that falls heavy on the shoulders of faith leaders across New York State. It stretches too wide. The bill defines “regulated health information” so broadly that even sacred conversations between pastor and parishioner, imam and congregant, rabbi and seeker could be swept into the net. What was once holy counsel risks being treated like corporate data. It shields the powerful but exposes the humble. Hospitals and clinics, covered under HIPAA, are given special exemptions. But the storefront church, the mosque on the corner, the synagogue basement — those places where the brokenhearted first turn — are left vulnerable. It completely threatens the covenant of trust. Imagine a mother, weary from postpartum depression, emailing her pastor’s office. She speaks because she feels safe, unjudged, and embraced. If that pastor must now fear her words are a regulated disclosure, the sacred trust between shepherd and flock is fractured. It drains the lifeblood of small congregations. Compliance costs, legal reviews, data systems are burdens small churches cannot bear. Resources meant for feeding the hungry, comforting the grieving, and guiding the lost would be siphoned into bureaucracy. It silences the first responders of the soul. In immigrant communities, in low-income neighborhoods, among the marginalized, clergy are often the only lifeline. If fear of regulation muzzles their ministry, the most vulnera-

ble lose their refuge. These burdens are not theoretical. Industry analyses of S929 show compliance costs ranging from tens of thousands for small nonprofits to millions for large institutions. Retail chains and transit agencies may absorb such costs. But small congregations, already stretched thin, would be forced to divert scarce resources from ministry to compliance. Hear me now: S929, as written, risks turning faith leaders into data clerks instead of spiritual caregivers. It risks breaking the sacred covenant of trust, burdening small congregations, and cutting off lifelines to those who need them most. Albany must not confuse the work of the Spirit with the work of data processors. Protect privacy, yes. But do not punish the very communities that cradle the brokenhearted. That is why I call upon the governor to veto S929 in its current form. Only then, can we honor the bill’s original vision — protecting New Yorkers from exploitation in the post-Dobbs era — while safeguarding the faith and community organizations that serve them. New Yorkers deserve both privacy and community. They deserve protection for their sensitive information and access to trusted spaces where they can seek help without hesitation. Albany must take the time to get this right. Protect privacy. Protect community. Protect the dignity of every soul who walks through our doors seeking support. Governor, do right by the people. Veto this bill. Stop regulating compassion. Bishop Johnny Ray Youngblood is the executive pastor and spiritual engineer of Mt. Pisgah Baptist Church in Jamaica, NY, where he is known for visionary leadership, communitycentered ministry, and an innovative approach to spiritual formation.

Ken Nash: Rest in power to a voice for the voiceless By HERB BOYD Last week, I received a notice from WBAI broadcaster Mimi Rosenberg that her long-term partner, Ken Nash, with whom she shared the airwaves on “Building Bridges,” had passed away. While I await more information, particularly vital statistics, I can recall the memorable occasions I had with him during my tenure as an instructor at DC-37 and the College of New Rochelle, which had a campus there. Ken was the librarian for the union’s library, and in this capacity, he was an invaluable resource for my research and lectures. We often had ex-

tensive discussions about the Civil Rights Movement, labor history, radical politics, and various other things. I remember accepting his invitation to appear on the radio with him during Black History Month celebrations, and he was as deeply informed about Black history as he was about union activism and labor history. Whenever new books arrive at the library, he would tip me off, making sure I was aware of them and whether I wanted him to set them aside for future use. Sometimes I would arrive early for my classes to have chats with him. He was among the first people I talked to in February 1993, after the first attack

on the World Trade Center. I had come there to pick up my check and stopped by the library to share my impressions with him. I took exception to his firing in 2001. In 2017, I was surprised to learn that he and Mimi had featured my book, “Black Detroit,” on the air. Of course, I shouldn’t have been stunned by this attention since Ken and I often had books on our minds. He is certainly on my mind now, and what a remarkable conversationalist he was and an extraordinary communicator — on and off the airwaves. As we often say to our dearly departed, rest in peace and power, Ken.

Why my holiday is a happy one this year

CHRISTINA

GREER, PH.D. Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all of my readers. We made it through another year and although it may seem like the world is on fire, I have so much to be thankful for. As I reflect on what this Christmas season means to so many, I am reminded of the Christmas narratives I learned as a child about the birth of Baby Jesus, the Three Wise men who showed up to bring gifts, and the beginning of a new life and a new world for all who believe. The story of the birth of Jesus always filled me with wonder and a sense of excitement as a child. When I think of this time of year, I will always remember a never-ending Johnny Mathis Christmas album on loop, snow on the ground, the smell of pine, and the joy of wrapping gifts for my loved ones. But overall, when I think of Christmas, and the holiday season, I think of all of the ways I am thankful for the abundance in my life. First, I am thankful for Elinor Tatum and all of the dedicated staff at the Amsterdam News who work so diligently to produce this important news source each week. I am so grateful for the role of the Black press to bring stories and voices we may not experience anywhere else. As fewer and fewer news outlets survive this turbulent media climate, the role of the Amsterdam News cannot be taken for granted. Second, I am thankful for the gift of friendship. My parents modeled long-standing friend-

ships my entire life. They are still close with college friends and folks they’ve met over the years. I am also thankful they modeled the ability to make new friends even as adults. There are so many good people in this world and I am so happy I remain open to meeting them even as I get older. I was told years ago just how important it is to keep different types of friends in your life. My friends are all so different in their interests, but the common denominator is their grace and thoughtfulness. Finally, there are so many aspects of my life I am thankful for but I want to thank you, dear reader, for your support this entire year. Thank you for reading my musings each week. Thank you for supporting the Amsterdam News by buying the paper or visiting the website. And thank you for keeping an open mind, and an open heart as we discuss all of the highs and lows in our city, our country, and the world. It is a true privilege to contribute to this publication and join the legacy of so many brilliant writers and thinkers who have contributed to this paper. Christina Greer, Ph.D., is an associate professor at Fordham University; author of the books “How to Build a Democracy: From Fannie Lou Hamer and Barbara Jordan to Stacey Abrams” and “Black Ethnics: Race, Immigration, and the Pursuit of the American Dream”; and co-host of the podcast FAQ-NYC.

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

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Arts & Entertainment 2025: The Year In Black Theater — Part 1 By LINDA ARMSTRONG Special to the AmNews It has been a magnificent year for Black Theater (By the way, you can still experience theater at exceptional levels by getting tickets to “Ragtime” at Lincoln Center. That’s a Broadway musical at its best!). Looking back at 2025, there was so much to appreciate. In January, the year started off with the musical comedy “Death Becomes Her” at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, starring Michelle Williams as the sexy, evil Viola Van Horn, who has the secret to eternal youth. Williams’s voice is on fire — she’s dynamite in the role. It also features Taureen Everett as Chagall, Viola’s sexy assistant. “The Prior 55” at Theater for the New City, written by Andrea J. Fulton and with poignant direction by Patricia R. Floyd, was a deep play that told the story of a psychiatric nurse named Mahala and her attempt to help a homeless man named Redman Blue living in a rural community in Louisiana. The production starred Martine Fleurisma as Mahala and veteran actor Michael Green as Redman Blue. They played their roles with humor, drama, concern, and empathy. In February, the New Federal Theatre held its Ancestral Voices Solo Festival and presented “Shirley Chisholm: Unbossed and Unbowed,” written and performed by Ingrid Griffith, at its theater home at WP Theater. The New Federal Theatre always tells our stories brilliantly and gives us detailed information, championing our people and our accomplishments. March showed that theater truly does have purpose: “Purpose,” Branden JacobsJenkins’s drama premiering on Broadway at the Helen Hayes Theater was theatrical perfection, going on to win the Tony for best play. It was a shining moment for Blacks on Broadway, because it was not only written by this Tony Award-winning Black playwright, it also featured a stellar cast of Black actors. The cast included Jon Michael Hill, Kara Young, who won the Tony for her performance, LaTanya Richardson Jackson, Glenn Davis, Harry Lennix, and Alana Arenas. The play contained complexity, humor, vulnerability, challenges, blind family loyalty, and the demons that we may carry in us. Add to all of this riveting direction by Phylicia Rashad and you had nothing less than a winner. The show was extended due to its stunning story and cast. “Wine in the Wilderness” was intoxicating theater for the soul, written by the late Alice Childress. The show, which played at the Classic Stage Company’s Lynn F. Angelson Theater, marked the directorial debut for Tony Award-winning actress LaChanze and was quite an impressive debut. The play depict-

Martine Fleurisma and Michael Green (l–r) in scene from “The Prior 55” at Theater for the New City (Victor Vauban Jr. photo)

Alana Arenas, Kara Young, Harry Lennix, LaTasha Richardson Jackson, Glenn Davis, and Jon Michael Hill (l–r) in scene from “Purpose” at the Helen Hayes Theater. (Marc J. Franklin photo)

ed a Black male painter during the Harlem riots of 1964 who was creating paintings to illustrate his vision of Black womanhood from their innocence to an imagined perfect beauty, to showing the worst that Black womanhood has to offer. Bill finds out one shouldn’t judge a book by its cover when he meets Tomorrow “Tommy” Marie. The

play starred Grantham Coleman as Bill and Olivia Washington as Tommy, and featured Milton Craig Nealy, Brooks Brantly, and Lakisha Michelle May. Every aspect of this production was done to perfection. “Othello” on Broadway at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre (W. 44th Street) starred Denzel Washington, who proved why he is a legend.

He delivered the moor with passion, anger, empathy, and vulnerability. It also featured Kimber Elayne Sprawl as Emilia, Desdemona’s servant, whose performance was electric and brilliant. This production was like no other “Othello” you may have seen before on Broadway, because it was directed See YEAR IN BLACK THEATER on page 16

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THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS & E N T E R T A I N

Stephen DeRosa, Jasmine Amy Rogers, and Phillip Huber in scene from “BOOP! The Musical” at Broadhurst Theatre. (Matthew Murphy and Evan Zimmerman photo)

Year In Black Theater Continued from page 15

by legendary director Kenny Leon. Anytime you attend a Broadway production and hear that Leon is directing, you should expect to see something bold, different, funny, and brutally dramatic where it needs to be. In April, “Macbeth in Stride,” which played at the Harvey Theater at BAM Strong, was the musical brainchild of Whitney White, who wrote it and starred in it as Lady Macbeth. Although most of us know her as a director, she also has quite an amazing singing voice and is a phenomenal actress. The musical featured exceptional actresses playing the three witches: Phoenix Best, Holli Conway, and Ciara Alyse Harris. “BOOP! The Musical” played at the Broadhurst Theatre (W. 44th Street) and was bountiful with cartoons and cuteness, creativity, and originality. This musical production — a glorious, blast of fresh air on Broadway — had a delightful, imaginative book by Bob Martin; engaging and entertaining music by David Foster; delightful lyrics by Susan Birkenhead; and absolutely scrumptious choreography and direction by Jerry Mitchell. It is based on the characters created by Max Fleischer. The character of Betty Boop was inspired by a Black jazz singer named Esther Jones, who was known as “Baby Esther,” so it was absolutely appropriate and fantastic that this character was portrayed by an amazing Black actress, Jasmine Amy Rogers, who not only made her Broadway debut, but left her mark on Broadway. The whim-

Ashley De La Rosa, Da’von T. Moody, Leonardo Reyna, Wesley Wray, Juilo Monge, Mel Seme, Jainardo Batista Sterling, and Isa Antonetti. The choreography by Patricia Delgado and Justin Peck will have you dancing in your seat. This musical has sensational direction by Saheem Ali (he’s been very busy). “Ceremonies In Dark Old Men” came back to the stage after 40 years to play at the Theatre at St. Clement’s (W. 46th Street) in a production presented by the Peccadillo Theater Company, Negro Ensemble Company Inc., and Eric Falkenstein. Written by Lonne Elder III, it told the story of the Parker family — the father, Russell, and his three adult children, Adele, Theopolis “Theo,” and Bobby. You saw the family struggling as Adele is the only person who feels she needs to work and ends up taking care of her father and adult brothers, until Theo comes up with a scheme to make money. It starred a tremendously talented cast led by Norm Lewis as Russell and feaDenzel Washington and Jake Gyllenhaal in scene from “Othello” at Ethel Barrymore tured wonderful performances by Morgan Theatre. (Julieta Cervantes photo) Siobhan Green as Adele, Bryce Michael sical musical took you from the B&W car- Melham, Anastacia McCleskey, Aubie Mer- Wood as Theo, and Jeremiah Packer as toon existence of Betty Boop filming movie rylees, Erich Bergen, and Phillip Huber. Bobby, along with James Foster Jr., Calvin shorts to Betty deciding that she wants Also marvelous was “Buena Vista Social M. Thompson, and Felicia Boswell. The more out of her existence — she wants to Club” which opened on Broadway at the production had stunning direction by Clingo to the real world. When she gets there, Schoefeld Theater (W. 45th Street). It tells ton Turner Davis. she experiences colors and is amazed and the amazing story of the Buena Vista Social “The Imaginary Invalid” played in Prosdelighted. She is like a kid in a candy store Club in Cuba — of its music and its artists. pect Park’s LeFrak Center at Lakeside for as she appears at the one place she would It is a story that begins with words and is free. The Moliére comedy combined a not only be accepted, but appreciated: the taken over by the vibration, sounds, and story, humor, and dance (original ballet New York Comic Con. Rogers’s voice was ab- rhythm of a people. It has a mesmerizing and hip hop), and was translated and disolutely stunning, as was her acting perfor- book by Marco Ramirez and a fantastic cast rected by Lucie Tiberghien. Starring in mance. She led a cast that included Stephen that stars Natalie Venetia Belcon (she won See YEAR IN BLACK THEATER DeRosa, Faith Prince, Angelica Hale, Ainsley the Tony for her role as Omara) and features continued on next page

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Continued from page 16

the lead role of Argan was Sahr Ngaujah and he was hilarious. Also featured were Shayvaun Webster as Angelique, Argan’s daughter who was being forced to marry, Naomi Lorrain, versatile and marvelous as Thomas, a doctor hoping to wed Angelique, and Beralde, Argan’s sister, Doron JePaul as Cleante, Donte Bonner in four roles. Dancer/choreographer Cal Hunt, along with composer/cellist Johnathan Moore, rounded out the company. “Goddess,” a new musical that played at the Public Theater was a celestial, theatrical soul-stirring gift. It had a superb book and direction by Saheem Ali, with additional material by James Ijames and splendid African-themed choreography by Darrell Grand Moultrie. The musical was set in Mombasa, Kenya, and told the mythological origin story of Marimba, the goddess of music. It starred the sublime Amber Iman and featured a fantastic cast that included Austin Scott, Arica Jackson, Nick Rashad Burroughs, Reggie D. White, J. Paul Nicholas, Ayana George Jackson, Destinee Rea, and Jason Bowen, along with Melessie Clark, Teshomech Olenia, and Awa Sal Secka. “The Black Wolfe Tone,” presented by the Irish Rep’s W. Scott McLucas Studio Theatre (W. 22nd Street) was a one-man show written by and starring Kwaku Fortune. He told a deeply personal and moving story of dealing with bipolar mental illness and growing up a Black man in Ireland. In June, honors for Black theater folk were abundant. At the 79th Annual Theatre World Awards, held at the Hard Rock Café, the legendary Leslie Uggams received the John Willis Award for Lifetime Achievement. The Theatre World awards recognize outstanding stage debuts and were given to Ayana Arenas for “Purpose” and Jasmine Amy Rogers for “BOOP.” At the 78th Annual Tony Awards, “Purpose” made history: Kara Young became the first actress to win for performance by an actress in a featured role in a play for two consecutive years. She won the year before her role in “Purlie Victorious: A Non-confederate Romp Through the Cotton Patch.” Playwright Branden Jacobs-Jenkins made history as the second Black playwright to win a Tony Award for two consecutive years, having received one for “Appropriate” the prior year. Glenn Davis became the first Black producer to accept a Tony for best play, for “Purpose.” Paul Tazewell won the Tony Award for costume design for “Death Becomes Her.” This year, the winner of the Excellence in Theatre Education Award was bestowed on Gary Edwin Robinson, the theater teacher and chair of the theater arts program at Boys and Girls High School in Brooklyn. “Lights Out: Nat “King” Cole” presented at the New York Theatre Workshop (79 E. 4th Street), written by Colman Domingo and Patricia McGregor, was a dignified, loving tribute that gave the audience a behind-the-scenes view of the final night of Cole’s television show. It starred Dule Hill

Shayvawn Webster; Rory Furey-King, and Sahr Njaujah in scene from “The Imaginary Invalid” playing at the Lefrak Center at Lakeside in Prospect Park. (Russ Rowland photo)

in the title role, who carried himself with a quiet dignity, and featured a delightful cast that included Daniel J. Watts, Krystal Joy Brown, Kenita Miller, Walter Russell III, Kathy Fitzgerald, Christopher Ryan Grant, Ruby Lewis, and Elliott Mattox. There was fantastic choreography by Edgar Godineaux and tap choreography by Jared Grimes, with direction by McGregor. “The Wash,” presented by the New Federal Theatre at WP Theatre, was definitely a must-see. Written by Kelundra Smith, it told a phenomenal story of the pride, dignity, and determination of Black women in 1881 Atlanta during the historic Atlanta Washerwomen Strike. The cast was stunning to watch. They were determined, funny, and poignant and included Eunice Woods, Bianca Laverne Jones, Margaret Odette, Alicia Pilgrim, Kerry Warren, and Rebecca Haden. There was seamless direction by Awoye Timpo. At the 69th Annual Drama Desk Awards at NYU Skirball Center, George C. Wolfe won for Outstanding Revival of a Musical for “Gypsy,” which he directed. Audra McDonald tied for Outstanding Lead Performance in a musical for “Gypsy” in playing Rose. Jasmine Amy Rogers also won this honor for “BOOP!” “Purpose” by Branden Jacobs-Jenkins won Outstanding Play, Kara Young won for Featured Performance in a Play. Dede Ayite won for Outstanding Costume Design of a Play for “Our Town.” Brian Stokes Mitchell received the William Wolfe Award for his dedication to theater and service.

When I own a home, I’ll invite the entire family over. Let’s work together to make it possible. Visit mtb.com/firsthouse or call 1-800-936-0969 to get started today.

18 • December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS B E S T O F 2 0 2 5

Novel details the ‘Midwife of the Harlem Renaissance’ By JULIAN MICHAEL CALDWELL Special to the AmNews

Ja so nF ros t ph oto)

NAACP Image Award-winning author Victoria Christopher Murray recounts the history of the woman who poet Langston Hughes called the “midwife of the Harlem Renaissance” in a new historical fiction novel titled “Harlem Rhapsody,” based on the life of literary editor Jessie Redmon Fauset. From 1919 to 1926, Fauset was the first and only literary editor of “The Crisis,” the official magazine of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), which launched in 1910. Murray, who has sold millions of copies of historical fiction novels such as “The Personal Librarian” about J. P. Morgan’s personal librarian, Belle da Costa Greene, had never heard of Fauset when she first sought to detail a story about a woman from the Harlem Renaissance period that took place roughly a century ago. “What I say is that Jesse Redmon Fauset found me,” Murray explained in an interview with the Amsterdam News. “I wanted to write about the Harlem Renaissance and she raised her hand and said, ‘I’m here, everybody’s been ignoring me.’ What stood out more to me is that there is a Black woman who started the literary side of the Harlem Renaissance.” Hughes’s high praise for Fauset was Murray’s introduction to her subject. The author went on to learn about how in Fauset’s post with “The Crisis,” and even her previous position as a teacher at Dunbar High School in Washington, D.C., Fauset published, edited, and mentored the likes of Hughes, Countee Cullen, Jean Toomer, and Nella Larsen before their writing careers took off. The moment that both solidified the movement that would become known as the Harlem Renaissance and cemented Fauset’s role in it came on March 21, 1924. That night Murray rein Harlem, called learnFauset hosted ing that a launch during that party for her event, writer novel “There Alain Locke, Is Confusion,” “Opportuniwhich is conty” magazine sidered the first editor Charles published novel Johnson, and featuring Black NAACP co-found( middle-class characy. er W.E.B. Dubois prora r u ters. The event also highclaimed that “[t]onight M er lighted many of the authors begins the New Negro Victoria Christoph whom Fauset published in “The Movement.” That movement Crisis,” and who would come to be most would later be called the Harlem Renaisassociated with the Harlem Renaissance, sance. providing them an initial in-person intro“After her [Fauset’s] book was published, duction to book publishers in attendance. over 40 other books by Black authors were

published in the same vein, and every single one of those books was by an author that she had edited, mentored, nurtured, and published,” Murray said. “Once they saw ‘There Is Confusion,’ every publisher now wanted to get their Black author.” DuBois also played a significant part in Fauset’s life for the well-documented love affair they were rumored to have while DuBois was married. Murray corroborated the rumors with letters from DuBois, and accounts from others who knew both of them. In “Harlem Rhapsody,” Murray imagines conversations between Fauset and DuBois, and interactions with others around them, such as Fauset’s stepmother, Bella Huff. As one of the most significant open secrets of the community at the time, the alleged decade-long affair had

ripple effects felt a century later. “I thought about writing about this book at first without their affair because I didn’t want to write anything salacious,” Murray said. “I wanted to write about who she was and all of the accomplishments she had, but when I tried to write the book without the affair, there were a lot of plot holes.” For instance, Murray believes Fauset’s move from Washington, D.C., to Harlem, where DuBois also lived, and her assignment as literary editor of “The Crisis” don’t make sense without factoring in the fondness DuBois developed for Fauset after they met in 1914. “The Crisis” never had a literary editor before Fauset or after she left in 1926 to teach at DeWitt Clinton High School in the Bronx, N.Y. Once Fauset joined the magazine, she transformed “The Crisis” from a publication that mostly featured scholarly articles about criminal justice reform, Black history, and social justice, to one that featured poetry, fiction, and creative essays, and provided a launching point for some of the most significant Harlem Renaissance scribes. Murray, who has published 30 books to date, spent five weeks out of her threemonth research period living in the Harlem neighborhood where Fauset lived, studying every day of that visit at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. Since there is no biography of Fauset, Murray relied on century-old articles and letters, and read every issue of “The Crisis” magazine published while Fauset was literary editor. From there, Murray wrote a fictional story meant to entertain, dramatizing Fauset’s relationships with people like DuBois and NAACP board member Mary White Ovington. “Everything is anchored in history, so I know the scene happened, but what I don’t know is what they said, what they wore, what they ate, what they thought, but I can extrapolate all of that from my research,” Murray explained. “People who wouldn’t normally read biographies — when you’re writing historical fiction, they wind up going down their own rabbit hole and doing their own research.” Beyond providing entertainment, Murray hopes that “Harlem Rhapsody” introduces readers to a woman who, by depicting Black middle-class characters in novels before many book publishers were comfortable with the idea, paved the way for authors like Murray herself. “This is the first novel where I’ve had a hard time letting go of the person,” Murray said. “This is the book that I was supposed to write. This is the book that my career was built for, because I got to bring [to readers] a woman so pivotal in not only Black history, but my history. She was as important as my ancestors to me because she opened the first door that allowed me to do what I love.” “Harlem Rhapsody” is available online and in store via retailers such as Barnes & Noble and Walmart.

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THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS B E S T O F 2 0 2 5

Ryan Coogler’s ‘Sinners’ is a supernatural scarefest (L-R) Jayme Lawson as Pearline, Wunmi Mosaku as Annie, Michael B. Jordan as Smoke, Miles Caton as Sammie Moore, And Li Jun Li as Grace Chow, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ “Sinners,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. (© 2025 Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. photos. All Rights Reserved.)

By MAGRIRA Special to the AmNews The biggest news to absorb about the new vampire thriller “Sinners,” written and directed by Ryan Coogler, is that this very gifted visual storyteller has created his own original intellectual property (IP), which has the power to transform his financial future from rich to wealthy. If for no other reason than that, you and your chosen tribe should descend on the movie theater like, well, a flock of bats (pun intended) on opening day (April 18), and return next month for a more affordable matinee. This is a bold, well-planned, historical supernatural thriller about vampires — so vividly imagined and passionately presented that it may leave your jaw slack. Set in the gritty Deep South in 1932, the story unfolds over 24 hours in the rural town of Clarksdale, Mississippi, home to hardworking sharecroppers, soulful blues singers, violent white supremacists, and longing lovers hoping for more than life has offered them. Enter the Smokestack twins, Smoke and Stack (both played by Michael B. Jordan), who return home after fighting on the German front in World War I and spending time in Chicago — where they worked for Al Capone and learned firsthand how the underworld operates. These are clever men who don’t blink when faced with danger. Their resume reads: hustlers, pimps, and killers. Now, their sights are set on rebuilding their lives in their small hometown in the thick of Jim Crow America. As a reminder, Jordan plays both characters. Double the trouble. A testament to Coogler’s skill, he uses

state-of-the-art digital techniques to present the twins together — passing a cigarette back and forth, and finishing each other’s lines. Twins, yes. The same person, no. Smoke wears a blue British flat cap. Stack is flashier, in a red-brimmed hat with a smile framed by gold-lined teeth. Stack has empathy. Smoke does not. This is a horror movie. There’s blood. There’s violence. And, like the best horror films, there are deeper, universal themes beneath the surface. “Sinners” is about the wages of sin on the African American community: people stolen from Africa, trafficked and sold as property to make others wealthy. Disposable. Dehumanized. The film doesn’t flinch. It acknowledges the full scope of evil in this world — and especially in this country. This is, after all, the land where, legend says, one can go to the crossroads and make a deal with the devil. That mythology is baked into African American cultural storytelling, and “Sinners” embraces it. Music holds the emotional center of the film; it’s where the unspoken truths live. Enter Sammie Moore (Miles Caton), known as Preacher Boy, a young man whose talent defies explanation. When he sings the blues, it feels as if heaven and hell both pause to listen. He’s the twins’ cousin, and they hire him to perform at their juke joint alongside Delta Slim (Delroy Lindo), a damaged harmonica and piano player who mostly plays in exchange for alcohol. Now, about the man behind it all: Ryan Coogler. In just over a decade, he’s delivered “Fruitvale Station” (2013), “Creed” (2015), “Black Panther” (2018), and “Wakanda Forever” (2022). With “Sinners,” he levels up again, claiming new ground with original IP that is entirely his.

(L-R) Michael B. Jordan and director Ryan Coogler In Warner Bros. Pictures’ “Sinners” a Warner Bros. Pictures release.

In interviews, Coogler has made it clear this film is personal. His vision is carried out through the lens of cinematographer Autumn Durald Arkapaw. This is Coogler’s fifth film with Michael B. Jordan, and their trust is evident. Jordan gives Smoke and Stack emotional weight. We believe these men are building something together. The juke joint is more than a club, it’s a symbol of purpose. And to make it work, they need to throw a party big enough to shake the night. That plan, however, draws in the wrong crowd — hungry, evil vampires. That part wasn’t in the business model. The first hour of “Sinners” is world-building, and it’s a brilliant choice. Coogler knows that if you don’t care about the characters, nothing in Act Two will matter. But it hits — and hard. Some critics may argue that watching the SmokeStack twins spend an entire afternoon prepping their juke joint is a waste of screentime. They would be wrong. People show up to help and are fed for their labor. A local Chinese couple (Li Jun Li and Yao), who own the town’s grocery store, are commissioned to create a

billboard. The more the twins interact with the community, the clearer it becomes: everyone needs this. To dance. To forget. To breathe. Both twins have women they left behind. Stack had Mary (Hailee Steinfeld). Smoke had Annie (Wunmi Mosaku), a local healer with whom he had a child with, that tragically died. Then, the heat rises. We meet Remmick (Jack O’Connell), a filthy, feral vampire who arrives at a farm where a couple’s Ku Klux Klan robes lie crumpled in the corner. In a flash, we realize: all three are vampires. In this film, vampires are not romantic symbols of forbidden desire. They are extensions of racist white culture, creatures who drain the life out of African American communities with no remorse. Monsters, not metaphors. The vampires arrive at the juke joint and ask to be invited in (a traditional rule in vampire lore). But Smoke and Stack aren’t naïve. They refuse. The vampires then ask Mary to come out, singing a chilling folk tune to lure her closer. No spoilers here. But once the cen-

tral characters are trapped and forced to fight for their lives, “Sinners” transforms into a commentary on cults, control, and spiritual warfare. The dual mythology at play is rich. Some viewers may miss it, but those attuned to it will feel the vibration. Music as a liberator. Sound as medicine. Vibrations as power, studied by scientists, practiced in healing traditions across cultures. The music in “Sinners” doesn’t just move the story forward. It lifts the film into the spiritual realm. And here’s why I believe Coogler will be nominated for an Oscar in 2026: that guitar Preacher Boy plays? It’s gifted to him by the twins. They tell him it once belonged to the legendary Charlie Patton, the preacher’s son. That detail alone could be its own film. There’s a lot to unpack in “Sinners.” But here’s what matters most: the film will not disappoint you. In any way. It’s not adapted from anyone else’s work, especially not from a white man’s intellectual property. This is Coogler’s story. His vision. His creation. And that 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes? Earned. Completely. “Sinners,” directed by Ryan Coogler opens April 18, 2025. To listen to Ryan Coogler, and other cast members talk about the making of “Sinners” — check out our blog AmNews Curtain Raiser. The links are: https://www.amnewscurtainraiser. com/2025/04/venus-d-thomas-talkssinners-with-ryan.html https://www.amnewscurtainraiser.com/2025/04/twin-brothers-facedarker-evil-in.html https://www.amnewscurtainraiser. com/2025/04/in-south-sins-dont-diethey-wait-ryan.html

20 • December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS B E S T O F 2 0 2 5

‘Jack Whitten: The Messenger’ at MoMA

Installation view of Jack Whitten: The Messenger, on view at The Museum of Modern Art, New York, from March 23 through August 2, 2025. (Jonathan Dorado photo)

By HERB BOYD Special to the AmNews On the seventh floor of the Museum of Modern Art, there is a massive collection titled “Jack Whitten: The Messenger.” It takes several large galleries to showcase Whitten’s prodigious talent and craftsmanship, to say nothing of his versatility and innovations. We have profiled Whitten (1939-2018) in our pages before, most notably when he died, just as he was completing his final work of art, “Atopolis,” composed of thousands of glittering tiles. He called the invented process “acrylic tesserae” which he created by taking slabs of dried acrylic paint, laying them out and then slicing them into various squares using a razor blade. Whitten possessed a boundless ingenuity, and when he couldn’t find the tools he needed to express his imagination, he created them — like the huge wooden T-frame tool he used like a giant squeegee that he called a “developer,” to spread his paint across a strip of canvas or linoleum. “The immediate urban environment of New York City provides the raw material of my paintings,” he said in his reflections at the end of the

Jack Whitten. The Afro American Thunderbolt. 1983/1984. Black mulberry wood with copper plate and nails, 25” x 9” x 10” (63.5 × 22.9 × 25.4 cm). Jack Whitten Estate. Courtesy the Estate and Hauser & Wirth. © Jack Whitten Estate. (Courtesy the Estate and Hauser & Wirth, Photo by Genevieve Hanson)

300-page book accompanying the exhibit, curated and published by Michelle Kuo. He also noted that “jazz, more than any other medium, continues to be the major influence on my work.” Several of those influences have pieces dedicated to them — Duke Ellington, John Coltrane and most notably Art Blakey,

to whom he pays tribute to in naming the exhibit “The Messenger.” Along with an array of different artistic styles in the paintings, a few of Whitten’s sculptures and totems are on display. There’s one that is sure to capture your attention adorned as it is with computer chips, digital paraphernalia, topped with a clock keeping ac-

curate time. Here and there among the objects, if you know something of Whitten’s birth in the South, his father’s work in the mines of Alabama, and long residence in Greece, the chronology of his life is revealed. His political activism and participation in the Civil Rights Movement become evident

in pieces dedicated to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X. His interest in physics, math, and quantum mechanics are other compelling elements of his multifaceted background, though much of that comes only after close inspection of the captions. See JACK WITTEN continued on next page

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS B E S T O F 2 0 2 5

Jack Whitten. Black Monolith VII, Du Bois Legacy: For W.E. Burghardt. 2014. Acrylic on canvas. 84” x 63” x 4” (213.4 x 160 x 10.2 cm). Collection of Charlotte and Herbert S. Wagner III. © Jack Whitten Estate. (Photo courtesy the Estate and Hauser & Wirth. Photographer: Genevieve Hanson)

December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025 • 21

Portrait of Jack Whitten with Pink Psyche Queen (1973), ca. 1975 © Jack Whitten Estate. (Photo courtesy the Estate and Hauser & Wirth.)

Continued from page 20

All in all, it’s quite an astonishing overview of Whitten’s remarkable career, an artist determined to explore the interstices between the gesture and the grid, to expand the definition of abstract expression, and forge his own concept of originality. But as he said at the close of the coffee table-sized book, “I am ultimately only interested in painting that goes beyond the notion of self. The self is a mirage designed by nature to prevent us from penetrating its secrets. This is why I like science. In the physical sciences, we must learn to circumvent the self in order to discover the root of being. There is no place for narcissism in painting except for illustrational fantasies.” Try to find a moment in your busy schedule to take a break and witness the amazing work of a genius. It’s at MoMA until August 2.

Installation view of ‘Jack Whitten: The Messenger,’ on view at The MoMA. (Jonathan Dorado photo)

Jack Whitten. NY Battle Ground. 1967. Oil on canvas, 60” x 83 7/8” (152.4 × 213 cm). The Museum of Modern Art, New York. Purchase and gift of Sandra and Tony Tamer, Agnes Gund, Marlene Hess and James D. Zirin, and Pamela J. Joyner and Alfred J. Giuffrida. (© 2025 The Museum of Modern Art, New York, Photo by Jonathan Muzikar.)

22 • December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS B E S T O F 2 0 2 5

A conversation with ‘Black Girl Magic’ poet Mahogany L. Browne By MARIELLE ARGUEZA Special to the AmNews

nia] told me “no, no, no, that’s not what we’re paying you for.” I found New York to be extremeMahogany L. Browne, Lincoln ly attrac tive, because nowhere Center’s first poet-in-residence, else in the world at that point — I is a woman of many talents, but think I was 23 — had I been given is probably best known for her an opportunity to just think about poem “Black Girl Magic,” pub- what my art could do if given a lished in 2018. The poem cele- chance. brates and uplifts the talents and strengths of Black women and AmNews: What was it about the girls, and is an ode to a rich his- time and place that made you tory of role models — but also a stay? conversation of young Black girls, MLB: My first week of interjust like she was once. views was like muMs da SchemIronically, she would have never er, Lil’ Kim, and Method Man and come around to poetry had it Redman. And I’m listening to this not been for Urban Word, an or- music growing up, right? So for ganization creating a safe space this to just be a Tuesday? There’s for youth to explore and express nothing like that in the world. them selves through poetry and Even in L.A, I think it’s fair to say, other literary arts. Browne has you can’t have that same experibeen raising money for the or- ence. New York had that energy ganization since the release of when it came to quote, unquote, her book through the annual “realness.” In L.A. it’s a lot of putBlack Girl Magic Ball at the Lin- ting on airs and you had to look a coln Center, which this year will certain way to be invited to a cerhonor Maori Karmael Holmes, tain place. It was weird and fake. Nona Hendryx, and Sade Lythcott, In New York, they respected you among others. if you did the work. They respectThe AmNews spoke with Browne ed you if you had skin in the game. ahead of the event, slated for May 13. I loved that I could just work hard and prove myself, and that would AmNews: Tell me about your up- be considered worthy. So I think bringing in the [California Bay that’s what [New York] has over Area]. It seems you were very ad- [California]. amant in your younger years that you wanted to stay in the AmNews: So the Black Girl Magic Bay Area. But then you had this Ball will honor five changemaksummer residency at the Pratt In- ers, leaders, and creatives, and an stitute in the late ‘90s. ally honoree. But I want to focus Mahogany L. Browne: I thought I on the fundraising efforts of Black was going to be a Cali girl forever. I Girl Magic Ball, which will help went to high school in Sacramen- fundraise for Urban Word. Tell me to, came back after gradua tion, why Urban Word is special. Why and worked at the Children’s Hos- was it established and who does pital for Oakland, the Sprint tele- it serve? And what are the origins marketing area for the operators of the Black Girl Magic Ball? in Alameda. I was everywhere, I MLB: Urban Word is a space. just love [California]. It’s such a Urban Word is a youth literary pleasant place to grow up, and organization. It was originally you don’t realize how much of that the East Coast branch of Youth feeds your curiosity and your ner- Speaks, but the organization vous system. broke off because of the way CalI had no intention of staying in ifornia moves, and the way New New York. Cali people love Cali. It York has to move — it’s just very felt like that was, you know, like different. So they went their septhat little summer opportunity in arate ways, but still share some New York. I’ll just come, do this things like the Interna tional jour nalism internship and then Poetry Festival. But that’s how we go back home and be their West get Urban Word. Coast correspondent. I personally was intrigued by Even while doing all the things [Urban Word] because I came to that I did in Oakland, I had never poetry in high school, by hook or been in a position to just be an by crook — well, literally by crook. artist. I could be an artist who My AP Lit teacher said she would worked at the hospital. I could be an flunk me because she didn’t like artist who could have another job, the language that I used in the but I wasn’t just going to be paid to poetry assignment, and that was be an artist. [Employers in Califor- enough for me to be like, ‘Oh, I’ll

love it! When I think about what an archive looks like, or what a legacy can look like, I want poetry to exist in all spaces of this campus. So poetry beside the Philharmonic? Sign me up! Poetry as a response to ballet? Absolutely. Poetry libretto? I made one. I just have been having a great time re minding the world that poetry is the epi center of all things. We can create a poem that reverberates to the world as a play, as a film, as you know, a doctor dissertation, like academic research — it’s all of the things! It has capacity, yeah, all of those things.

Dr. Mahogany L. Browne (Anthony Artis photo)

never do this again!’ So to be part of Urban Word, it felt like a welcome home moment, because I got to fight for the little girl that I once was. I got to fight alongside these young people who are constantly being told whether how they speak makes their story valid or not. That’s Urban Word — that’s their fight. They’re on the front line of reminding the young people that they have a voice, that despite their age, they are still necessary, and we need them to speak the truth. Black Girl Magic Ball began [in a] very small shop. It was my book release party, and I didn’t want to just do another book re lease party. I was artistic director at Urban Word, and that was my attempt to raise money for an organization that I had been working with and had loved for so long. It made sense. I thought it would be a one off. We did the event, we raised the money. We had great attendance. We also had people, like, that were really in love with the idea. And that’s when I realized, ‘Oh, we don’t really have a space for Black girls to feel safe.’ We asked so much of them. We asked them to be the blueprint. We asked them to, you know, tell us how to do our hair and how to be funny and whatever else. But we’re also the butt of the joke as often as possible. And so what does it mean to just have a space where nobody is making fun of

you or using you as a transaction? But that’s what the Black Girl Magic Space is. AmNews: I want to talk about that a little more about that. You’re not just a poet, you are also helping run and lead these events. You are also the Lincoln Center’s first poet-in-residence. Being the “first” can be a dou ble-edged sword firstly as a “woman” but more so as a Black woman. But I read that you wanted this event to be an affirming event and celebration. What does it mean to you to be the first poet-in-residence in such a huge cultural institution that’s recognized worldwide? And what helps you affirm your own work? MLB: I think to be the inaugural anything is heavy, right? Because you don’t know what you don’t know. I was concerned [about the Lincoln Center] because like — well, do you know who I am? Are you aware that I speak like this at all times? And as long as you’re OK with that, I’m good. And they were, they were OK with that! I think for me to just realize that you don’t have to whitewash who you are. You got to find the organization that’s brave enough to work with you. So that was really a mon umental moment, and it went from a three-month opportunity to a five-year tenure.

AmNews: If there are young Black girls out there, what pieces of your own work would you suggest for them to read to get to know you? MLB: I would say, obviously the Black Girl Magic Ball is created because of the book. The book is just centering Black women, celebrating them throughout the community. There isn’t any one way to show up and celebrate it — you being yourself is, that’s the celebration. So that’s obvious, but I think what I’ve just released feels very much like it’s in conversation with the “Black Girl Magic” theme, which is “A Bird in the Air Means We Can Still Breathe.” It’s a YA novel . It centers on young people in New York City impacted by COVID-19, and how they moved around, how they, you know, just from the foster care system to the, you know, to the shoe on Rikers Island, from being political speakers trying to raise funds and awareness during COVID. What did that look like and who was impacted? And of course, the chorus throughout, the narrators are two Black girls, one Trini, one Jamaican. And that feels like a great amuse-bouche of it all. AmNews: What suggested reading do you have for Black Girl Magic Ball attendees? MLB: If I’m thinking poems, it’s always Sonia Sanchez, Patricia Smith, Nikki Giovanni. If it’s a play, I would say a play by Lynn Nottage or Lorraine Hansberry. If it’s nonfiction, I would say Imani Perry’s “Black in Blues.” If it is short stories, I would say Deesha Philyaw, “Secret Lives of Church Ladies.” Oh! And Jesmyn Ward’s “Salvage the Bones.” I think that covers most things.

AmNews: Hell, yeah! For more info, visit mobrowne. MLB: Right? Never have I ever! I com and blackgirlmagicball.org

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Receivership

Continued from page 5

receivership. The Nunez Remediation Manager “will be appointed by and answerable only to the Court” under Swain, who was handpicked by democratic former president Bill Clinton and boasts a lifetime tenure as a federal judge. In fact, a receiver’s role is directly tied to independence. Receiverships often need to make politically-unpopular decisions to eliminate constitutional violations and need to ensure their implemented reforms are sustainable once they abdicate control. DOC commissioner Lynelle MaginleyLiddie will be retained and work alongside the receiver, which Stroud said is unprecedented. While some other correctional heads previously remained in their roles under receivership, the constitutional reforms were more narrowly tailored compared to the broad takeover of New York’s city jail system. Maginley-Liddie, the department’s first Black woman commissioner, drew praise from the monitoring team in Nunez reports. The city previously proposed to install her as a “compliance director,” basically allowing her to answer to the city and judge alike. “We did not think this dual hat system made any sense or would lead to, what the court has called, ‘the transformational change’ that’s necessary,” said Greenberger. “We said that what we need is an independent receiver. And then what happened this week is that the Court said we need an independent receiver, a dual hat approach that the city is proposing is not something she was going to adopt.” Receivers overseeing jails or prisons do not necessarily need a correctional background. For example, a judge appointed then-incoming Alabama Gov. Forrest James Jr. to oversee the state’s prison system in the late 1970s. Several prominent names showed interest in the role earlier this year, including renowned civil rights attorney Norman Siegel. He told the Amsterdam News “it would be an honor” and hopes to address the Sixth Amendment’s right to a speedy trial through the receivership, given most of Rikers Island’s population is held on pretrial detention and are innocent before proven guilty. “There’s something wrong with the system there that adds to tension between the staff and the detainees, and the detainees among themselves,” said Siegel. “And I don’t think you can minimize that overriding factor.” Receivership’s limited scope With the receivership’s independence comes limitations on involvement with other existing reforms. The Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA) signed into law by Pres. Clinton in 1996 famously limited incarcerated individuals’ ability to sue in federal court. But the legislation also curbs a

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS F 2 0 2 5 federal judge’s ability to interject in prison and jail operations. “That law says essentially that when crafting something like a receivership, you have to do it in the most narrow way possible,” said Stroud. “Laser-focused on the remediation of the constitutional violations, and you can go no further than that. There’s a whole lot conceivably that the court could pursue in terms of improvements and changes … but the court really is bound by the PLRA and judicial precedents that say you can only focus on eliminating the constitutional violations and nothing more.” The city’s borough-based jail plan mandates Rikers Island’s closure by 2027. Four facilities based near the city’s municipal criminal courts and designed to mitigate custody conditions would then hold the remaining people in detention. However, construction is significantly behind schedule, with some slated to open past 2030. Due to PLRA, the Nunez Remediation Manager cannot directly address political measures like Rikers’ closure. But the receivership can unofficially further the city’s plan if it aligns with eliminating constitutional violations. For example, the Adams administration long blamed Rikers’ high population count for stymying the closure plan as the new facilities can only house around 4,000 people. The receiver could push for decarceration if overcrowding contributed to unconstitutional conditions. “We’re gonna continue to do the advocacy and organizing around those issues that we’ve been pushing the city to implement the law, and that’s around decarceration,” said Freedom Agenda co-founder Darren Mack, a major advocate for Rikers’ closure. “We’ve seen the monitor agree that we need to reduce the population … regardless if there’s a receiver or not, our work is going to continue to push the city to seek to implement the [borough-based jail] plan.” The tug-of-war between Adams and the city council also includes solitary confinement-related practices and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) presence on Rikers Island. In fact, the mayor recently blamed local laws passed by the council for the receivership order. He pointed to the borough-based jail plan for preventing capital improvements on Rikers Island. Adams also said he hoped Swain would look at “laws that state that we can’t handcuff dangerous inmates when we’re transporting them.” The federal monitor’s report on Local Law 42 of 2024, the solitary confinement-related ban the mayor is likely referring to, pondered whether some of the provisions would undermine Nunez reforms. Tandy Lau is a Report for America corps member who writes about public safety for the Amsterdam News. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep him writing stories like this one; please consider making a tax-deductible gift of any amount today by visiting https://bit.ly/amnews1.

December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025 • 23

otection and Affordable Care Act.31, 2025 Rangel calls Iraq bombing troubling, uncivilized 24 • December 25, 2025 - December THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS archives) J ZAMGBA BROWNE Amsterdam(AmNews News Staff committee hearing, Rangel said, New York Amsterdam News (1962-); Jul 3, 1993; B E S T O F 2 0 2 5 Rangel: Reagan ignored the poor Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without ProQuestpermission. Historical Newspapers: New York Amsterdam News a moral obligation in terms of the pg. 5 an end but “Lion of Lenox Avenue,” people who have lost their homes, come tounseating the invincible congressman. est concentration of poverty, according his occasions, prestige inRangel Harlem, parbankruptcy as a result of the costs was not without On several was in Pow- to the 1990 Census. No matter the event, ticularlyell’s at company the City College Newassembled York ng health care.” Continued from page 8 when heofoften the UMEZ was always mentioned among residents display his power. Once congressman who often pro- where he helmedtothe Charles B. Rangel In-at the Rangel’s most significant contributions to lawyer admitted the New Bar.”frastructure Rooster bar, where Powell held he hadn’t had atobad day York since Workforce Initiative, fully forth, pre- “I’d the Harlem community. But his crownRangel’s rise from leadership in to gone alone, was generation stupid,” Rangel unded during thepoverty Koreanto War, pared usher in which the next of ad- ing achievement as a congressman came Congress beganwere on June 11, 1930, he professionals mitted in his autobiography. Powell had all in 2007 when he became the first African he admitted, several set-when skilled to meet the demands was borncritical in Harlem. Raised by his of his boosters andHaving fans prepared ne more than a string of mother, of a changing industry. served to invoice American to chair the House Ways and grandfather, and his uncle Herbert, he ata chorus of “Yes, Congressman!” “I was lations, which he was accused of New York’s 15th Congressional District for still Means Committee. tended P.S. 89, Junior High School 139, and brand-new as a district leader, and I was Rangel was also a champion for the Carent-controlled apartments in nearly half a century, his new office at City later DeWitt Clinton High School, where he once again overly impressed with the in- ribbean, advocating first for a normalvalues far below market. When College has become an incubator, bridging did well as a student. After dropping out of vitation to meet Adam. But the meeting ization of relations between the U.S. and nged charges, it merely opportunity. It was highthose school, he enlisted in theexU.S. education Army. wasand all about ‘So...you’re thejust newanguy on Cuba and later for Haitian refugees. In a his situation and led to discloother way of perpetuating his leadership, He served during the Korean War and was the block ... you’re the smart one …’ You’re 1993 article, Rangel told the AmNews, “It npaid taxes. The end result ofand thereceived carryingthis onand what heI learned had done previousseriously wounded in combat, that. a lesson from that is time to end the Cold War in our hemiispute, withStar Rangel denying any ly in Congress the various committees the Bronze and Purple Heart. meeting,on and I remembered everyone who sphere.” Later, adding “Cuba poses no ng, led to his leave of absence a and subcommittees, UMEZ, and his was there.” Forwith the next few years, he said, threat at all to the U.S.” before Obama enacted determination to upend apartheid On thePresident rise the meeting haunted him. in South On behalf of Haitian refugees, Rangel Upon discharge from the military, Rangel said, “The explosive situation in Haiti deable Care Act in 2010. EventualAfrica. Even as he basked in the sun on the enrolled at Newfound York University, a legend establishing hics Committee he violat- earned beach atTaking Puntaon Cana in the and Dominican Re- his mands forthright action by our governdegree in 1957, andhim three public years with ownhis legacy ment to protect Haitian refugees in any t his all B.A. of the charges against wife, Alma, who died in 2024, lawcensure degree from John’s 20, 1970, Rangel announced way possible.” He added, “With the evd later, 9 to 1a to him.St. The full UniverreflectingOn on February his two children and grandchilsityunanimously Law School. Ato working man his run against Powell,on and doing so, er-present threat of violence in Haiti, we ted censure thethroughdren, Rangel was ruminating hisinlegacy out his life, he was fond recalling gave up his seat. As it turned must put an immediate end to the deporsentative to undergo suchoftreatandhis other issues still Assembly to be resolved. job as a night desk clerk at the Hotel The- out, Rangel narrowly defeated Powell, tations. It has been an inhumane policy generation. At the close of his autobiography, he said, resa, Harlem’s Waldorf-Astoria. “At nights never needing the Republican ballot line. from the start that we practice against no he 2010 election, Rangel, his rep- “I’ve spent all of my life preparing this case when I worked, it was Grand Central Sta- “I won the Democratic primary in June by other nationality.” omewhat blemished, narrowly (his meeting with St. Peter). It will tion for the biggest Black stars of stage and 150 votes,” Rangel said. Andinclude he defeated As chair of the Ways and Means Comhe challengers in the Democratthe Caribbean Basin Initiative, Africanto the mittee, Rangel led the economic recovscreen, the top athletes, the highest roll- Powell when he took thethe outcome y.ers, Even was hangGrowth Supreme and Opportunity the andso, all the the handwriting inevitable low-life Court. “AllAct, I had toEmpowreally do,” he ery after a terrible recession in 2008. He ll, his influence diminished, and erment Zones, and the Rangel Low-Income ers-on,” he wrote in his autobiography. said about the contest, “was dominate the played a key role in the Democrats’ landmporarily relieved of full status in KenneHousingvote Credits, among many other In 1961, Attorney General Robert in my district...and that,things, you might mark health care bill, the Patient Proteclisted as an exRangel officio assistant member U.S. of in the Congressional Record.ofAnd if St. Pedy appointed attorsay, was my margin victory,” he said. tion and Affordable Care Act. During a nd Amongofhis overly impressed myHarlem legis- will committee hearing, Rangel said, “We have neyMeans for theCommittee. Southern District Newter’s York.notFor the first time in itswith history, Six years later, heretiring won election to thelative New record, have a then congressional district office. a moral obligation in terms of the number (AmNews archives) Congress before after the I’ll just have to tell him York State hitI could. the ground having of people who have lost their homes, gone gress was asAssembly. a ranking member of that I didRangel the best And ifrunning, I succeed But only soundly defeated Republican candi- into bankruptcy as a result of the costs of Avenue,” was not without his prestige in mmittees on focusing Trade. on his first elected in getting a room with athe view, then I can misses two highlights of his life:saydate general He was hardly providing health care.” Harlem, particularly at the City College of g office, tenurehein Congress may have truly thatinI the haven’t hadelection. a bad time.” SIMON ANEKWE Amsterdam News Staff New York Amsterdam News (1962-); Feb 6, 1988; ProQuest Historical Newspapers: New York Amsterdam News pg. 3

Charles B. Rangel

His marriage to Alma Carter in 1964 and the 54-mile trek he made with others from Selma to Montgomery in 1965. “I cursed every step of those fifty-four miles, wondering how the hell did I start marching with these redneck national guard troops for an escort,” he wrote. “People in every house we passed along the way called us everything under the sun, and threw things at us. Every store played ‘Bye, Bye Blackbird’ from loudspeakers.” One man, he recalled, asked him if he wanted a shower since they were sleeping in tents scattered around the fields. “We met and climbed into this broken down car on a dirt road,” Rangel continued, “and as this overcrowded car took off in the darkness, we saw that we were being followed. Damn, were we scared. We sped up, turned around, and gave up all thoughts of showering –– all we wanted to do was get back to our group.” Thanks to the influence of J. Raymond Jones, known as “The Harlem Fox” for his political sagacity, Rangel’s political career was launched, having succeeded Percy Sutton for the 11th A.D. It was also the beginning of a lifelong friendship with Sutton that later morphed into the forging of the Gang of Four, including Basil Paterson and David Dinkins. With Rep. Powell battling cancer and spending too much time out of the country, Rangel was among a cadre of young politicians who began to talk about

in his seat when he became a co-founder of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) in 1971. The CBC was the initial step in solidifying the gains of the civil rights movement. Among the first legislative moves by Rangel was to distance himself from Powell’s shadow with concerted campaigns against drugs. But he was most proud of his three articles against President Nixon, above and beyond the Judiciary Committee, in 1974. In 1983, Rangel became chair of the Select Committee on Narcotics Abuse and Control and was subsequently appointed a deputy whip for the House Democratic leadership, a position he maintained until 1993. As the consensus on how to address the drug crisis shifted among progressives, Rangel evolved from a stubborn proponent of using prosecution and law enforcement to stomp out the blight to an advocate for reform. In a 1990 article on President Bush’s new drug strategy, the AmNews wrote: “he was concerned that ‘there was nothing in the updated strategy which addresses the root cause of drug abuse.’” He went on to say, “The need to attack the root causes of drug abuse cannot be overlooked.” A year later, under federal legislation authored by Rangel, President Clinton, the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone (UMEZ) was created. It was established to assist residents who had the high-

For a congressman who often proclaimed he hadn’t had a bad day since being wounded during the Korean War, there, as he admitted, were several setbacks, none more critical than a string of ethics violations, which he was accused of accepting rent-controlled apartments in Harlem at values far below market. When he challenged those charges, it merely exacerbated his situation and led to disclosures of unpaid taxes. The end result of the ongoing dispute, with Rangel denying any wrongdoing, led to his leave of absence a few days before President Obama enacted the Affordable Care Act in 2010. Eventually, the Ethics Committee found he violated almost all of the charges against him and voted 9 to 1 to censure him. The full House voted unanimously to censure the first representative to undergo such treatment in a generation. During the 2010 election, Rangel, his reputation somewhat blemished, narrowly defeated the challengers in the Democratic primary. Even so, the handwriting was on the wall, his influence diminished, and he was temporarily relieved of full status in Congress, listed as an ex officio member of the Ways and Means Committee. Among his last acts in Congress before retiring after the 114th Congress was as a ranking member of the Subcommittees on Trade. His long tenure in Congress may have come to an end but “Lion of Lenox

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New York where he helmed the Charles B. Rangel Infrastructure Workforce Initiative, fully prepared to usher in the next generation of skilled professionals to meet the demands of a changing industry. Having served in New York’s 15th Congressional District for nearly half a century, his new office at City College has become an incubator, bridging education and opportunity. It was just another way of perpetuating his leadership, carrying on what he had done previously in Congress on the various committees and subcommittees, with UMEZ, and his determination to upend apartheid in South Africa. Even as he basked in the sun on the beach at Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic with his wife, Alma, who died in 2024, reflecting on his two children and grandchildren, Rangel was ruminating on his legacy and other issues still to be resolved. At the close of his autobiography, he said, “I’ve spent all of my life preparing this case (his meeting with St. Peter). It will include the Caribbean Basin Initiative, the African Growth and Opportunity Act, the Empowerment Zones, and the Rangel Low-Income Housing Credits, among many other things, in the Congressional Record. And if St. Peter’s not overly impressed with my legislative record, then I’ll just have to tell him that I did the best I could. And if I succeed in getting a room with a view, then I can truly say that I haven’t had a bad time.”

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025 • 25

CLASSIFIED ADS 100 PUBLIC NOTICES RULES AND REGULATIONS CANCELLATIONS must be made in writing by 12 Noon Monday. The forwarding of an order is construed as an acceptance of all advertising rules and conditions under which advertising space is sold by the NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS. Publication is made and charged according to the terms of this card. Rates and regulations subject to change without notice. No agreements as to position or regulations, other than those printed on this. Til forbid orders charged for rate earned. Increases or decreases in space take the rate of a new advertisement. The New York AMSTERDAM NEWS reserves the right to censor, reject, alter or revise all advertisements in accordance with its rules governin g the acceptance of advertising and accepts no liability for its failure to insert an advertisement for any cause. Credit for errors in advertisements allowed only for first insertion. CLASSIFIED • Classified advertisements take the regular earned rate of their classification. Four line minimum on all ads except spirituals and horoscopes (14 lines). CLASSIFIED DISPLAY • Classified Display (boarder or picture) advertisements take the regular earned rate of their classification. Display (boarder or picture) advertisements one column wide must be 14 lines deep; two columns, 28 lines deep; 3 columns, 56 lines deep. Classified Display (boarder or picture) placed as close to classifications as rules and makeup permit. CLASSIFICATIONS All advertisement accepted for publication is classified according to the standard classifications. Misclassification is not permitted. BASIS OF CHARGE Charges are based on point size and characters per line. Upon reaching 15 lines the rate converts to column inch. Any deviation from solid composition such as indentation, use of white space, bold type, etc., will incur a premium. In Case of error, notify the Amsterdam News 212-932-7440

101 LEGAL NOTICES

NOTICE OF FORMATION OF RABIN SCHUMANN AND PARTNERS LLP amended name RABIN PFEFFER AND PARTNERS LLP. Cert of Reg filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 12/24/20 and amended to change name on 7/7/25. SSNY designated as agent upon whom process against it may be served and shall mail a copy of any process against the LLP served upon him/her to: 11 Times Sq, Flr 10, NY, NY 10036. Purpose: legal services.

NOTICE OF SALE

Notice of formation of SOFTBALL LG LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/10/2025. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to JESSE WILLIAM GREEN: 115 CENTRAL PARK W. APT. 6CE. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of Formation of TALCOTT GARDENS PRESERVATION, L.P. Cert. of LP filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 12/01/25. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LP: 30 Hudson Yards, 72nd Fl., NY, NY 10001. Latest date on which the LP may dissolve is 12/31/2125. SSNY designated as agent of LP upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. Name and addr. of each general partner are available from SSNY. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Notice of Formation of TALCOTT GARDENS PRESERVATION CLASS B, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 12/01/25. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 30 Hudson Yards, 72nd Fl., NY, NY 10001. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Notice of Qualification of TALUS GROUP HOLDINGS LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 12/05/25. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 06/05/14. Princ. office of LLC: 110 Greene St., #1202, NY, NY 10012. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with DE Secy. of State, John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF new york , TUEBOR REIT SUB LLC, Plaintiff, vs . 2338 SECOND AVENUE MAZAL LLC , ET AL., Defendant(s). Pursuant to an Amended Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly entered on November 25, 2025 , I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the New York County Supreme Court, Room 252 of the New York County Courthouse, 60 Centre Street, New York, NY 10007 on January 21, 2026 at 2:15 p.m., premises known as; Parcel I; 2338 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10035 (Block 1796, Lot 51) Parcel II: 329 Pleasant Avenue, New York, NY 10035 (Block 1711, Lot 26) Parcel III; 2211 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10035 (Block 1785, Lots 1201, 1203, 1204 and 1205) Premises are to be sold individually starting with Parcel III, then Parcel I, and lastly Parcel II, until the sale of a Premises or such part thereof may be sufficient to discharge the mortgage debt evidenced by that certain Consolidated, Amended and Restated Mortgage, Assignment of Leases and Rents, Security Agreement and Fixture Filing dated as of December 6, 2021 (the “Mortgage”), at which point the auction will cease. All that certain plots, pieces or parcels of lands, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough and County of New York, City and State of New York. Approximate amount of judgment is $69,123,716.34 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of Amended Judgment of Foreclosure Index #850117/2024. Cash will not be accepted. Jeffrey R. Miller, Esq., Referee Richard J. Galati, Jr., ALSTON & BIRD LLP, 90 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10016, (212) 2109400, Attorneys for Plaintiff Notice of Qualification of 261 MADISON AVENUE LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/19/25. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 11/05/25. Princ. office of LLC: The Sapir Organization, 261 Madison Ave., 17th Fl., NY, NY 10016. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co. (CSC), 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: c/o CSC, 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State of DE, 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

101 LEGAL NOTICES

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT ‑ COUNTY OF NEW YORK. 57TH ST. VACATION OWNERS ASSOCIATION, INC., BY AND THROUGH ITS BOARD OF DIRECTORS, Plaintiff ‑against‑ MARK H. MINEUR, et al Defen‑ dant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated October 22, 2025, I, the under‑ signed Referee will sell at public auction in Room 252 of the New York County Courthouse, 60 Centre Street, New York, NY on January 28, 2026 at 2:15p.m. premises situate, lying and be‑ ing in the Borough of Manhat‑ tan, County of New York, City and State of New York, being an undivided ownership interest as tenant‑in‑common with other owners in the Timeshare Unit in the building located at 102 West 57th Street, New York, NY. Together with an appurtenant undivided .009864% common interest percentage. This is a foreclosure on ownership inter‑ est in a timeshare unit, a studio penthouse on a floating use basis every year, in accordance with and subject to declara‑ tions. Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions dated October 10, 2008 and October 31, 2008 as CFRN # 2008000426142 as recorded in the Office of the City Register, County, City and State of New York. The Timeshare Unit is also designated as Block 1009 and Lot 37. Said premises known as 102 WEST 57TH STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10019 Approximate amount of lien $27,979.93 plus interest & costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale. Index Number 850370/2023. TOM KLEINBERGER, ESQ., Referee DRUCKMAN LAW GROUP PLLC Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 242 Drexel Avenue, Westbury, NY 11590 DLG# 39282 {* AMSTERDAM*} Notice of formation of IMMACULATE MANAGEMENT GROUP LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 08/20/2025. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to JAMES BARNES: 1221 E 305th Willowick, OH 44092. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.

SUPREME COURT ‑ COUNTY OF NEW YORK. OLYMPIC TOWER CONDO‑ MINIUM, BY ITS BOARD OF MANAGERS, Plaintiff ‑against‑ SKY 641 LLC, et al Defen‑ dant(s). Pursuant to a Judg‑ ment of Foreclosure and Sale dated October 29, 2025 and entered on October 30, 2025, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction in Room 252 of the New York County Courthouse, 60 Centre Street, New York, NY on Wednesday, January 28, 2026 at 2:15 p.m. premises situate, lying and be‑ ing in the Borough of Manhat‑ tan, City, County and State of New York, known as Unit 28‑F known as "The Olympic Tower Condominium" Together with an undivided .1753821 percent interest in common elements. Block 1287 Lot: 1054. Said premises known as 641 FIFTH AVENUE, UNIT 28F, NEW YORK, NY 10022 Approximate amount of lien $39,328.28 plus interest & costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale. Index Number 160276/2024. RONALD ZEZIMA, ESQ., Ref‑ eree Schwartz Sladkus Reich Green‑ berg Atlas LLP Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 444 Madison Ave., 6th Floor, New York, NY 10022

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT ‑ COUNTY OF NEW YORK. 57TH ST. VACATION OWNERS ASSOCIATION, INC., BY AND THROUGH ITS BOARD OF DIRECTORS, Plaintiff ‑against‑ JEFFREY L. BROWNELL, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated September 3, 2025, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction in Room 252 of the New York County Courthouse, 60 Centre Street, New York, NY on January 21, 2026 at 2:15 p.m. premises situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County of New York, City and State of New York, being an undivided owner‑ ship interest as tenant‑in‑com‑ mon with other owners in the Timeshare Unit in the build‑ ing located at 102 West 57th Street, New York, NY. Together with an appurtenant undivided .015838% common interest per‑ centage. This is a foreclosure on ownership interest in a time‑ share unit, a studio penthouse on a floating use basis every year, in accordance with and subject to declarations. Decla‑ ration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions dated October 10, 2008 and October 31, 2008 as CFRN # 2008000426142 as recorded in the Office of the City Register, County, City and State of New York. The Timeshare Unit is also designated as Block 1009 and Lot 37. Said premises known as 102 WEST 57TH STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10019 Approximate amount of lien $16,215.93 plus interest & costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale. Index Number 850230/2023. JEFFREY MILLER, ESQ., Ref‑ eree DRUCKMAN LAW GROUP PLLC Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 242 Drexel Avenue, Westbury, NY 11590 DLG# 39147 {* AMSTERDAM*} Notice of formation of Aurelius Consulting & Solutions Group. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/07/2025. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Jay Bracey: 3904 Avenue D, Brooklyn, NY, 11203, USA. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.

Notice of formation of Inclusynth Consulting Group LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 7/24/2025. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Christopher Schmidt: cschmidt@ inclusynth.com. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.

Notice {*ofAMSTERDAM*} Formation of LUNA THE CAT LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/12/25. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Notice of formation of James Lenox Partners LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/28/2025. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to James Lenox Partners LLC: natan.shklyar@jameslenoxpartners.com. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of Qualification of ATEA 168 Holding LLC. Certificate of Authority filed with Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/12/2025. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). Limited Liability Company (LLC) formed on 11/06/2025. SSNY designated as agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to eResidentAgent, Inc: eteam@eminutes.com. Articles of Organization originally filed with Secretary of State (SOS). Secretary of State, 401 Federal Street, Ste 4, Dover, DE 19901 Purpose: Any lawful purpose.

Notice of Formation of MYZI LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 12/02/25. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to 417 W 120th St Apt 2B New York, NY 10027, USA Purpose: Any lawful activity.

26 • December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

101 LEGAL NOTICES

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT NEW YORK COUNTY VELOCITY COMMERCIAL CAPITAL, LLC, Plaintiff against PETER DAVIDSON, AS ADMINISTRATOR TO THE ESTATE OF MARY E. KAPLAN, et al Defendant(s) Attorney for Plaintiff(s) McMichael Taylor Gray, LLC, 28 Corporate Drive, Suite 104, Halfmoon, NY 12065. Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered November 19, 2025, I will sell at public auction to the highest bidder at Room 252 at the Supreme Court, New York County, 60 Centre Street, New York, New York on January 14, 2026 at 2:15 PM. Premises known as 353 West 56th Street, Unit 9A, New York, NY 10019. Block 1047 Lot 1564. All that certain lot, piece or parcel of land, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, City, County and State of New York. Approximate Amount of Judgment is $1,679,606.17 plus interest, fees, and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index No 850124/2019. The foreclosure sale will be conducted in accordance with 1st Judicial District's Covid-19 Policies and foreclosure auction rules. The Referee shall enforce any rules in place regarding facial coverings and social distancing. Referee will only accept a certified bank check made payable to the referee. Scott H. Siller, Esq., Referee File # 23-000633-01

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF NEW YORK JPMORGAN CHASE BANK N.A., Plaintiff AGAINST ROOSEY KHAWLY, ET AL., Defendant(s) Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly entered February 25, 2025, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the New York County Courthouse in Room 252, located at 60 Centre Street, New York, NY on January 21, 2026 at 2:15 PM, premises known as 15 West 53rd Street, Units 29A, 29F, 30A, New York, NY 10019. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, City, County and State of New York, Block: 1269, Lot: 1140 and 1145 and 1146. Approximate amount of judgment $11,351,008.92 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index #850464/2023. Clark Whitsett, Esq., Referee Fein, Such & Crane, LLP 28 East Main Street Rochester, NY 14614 CHNC1631 88060

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF New York, Wilmington Savings FunD Society, FSB, not in its Individual Capacity, but Solely as Owner Trustee for CSMC 2022-NQM3 Trust, Plaintiff, vs. Future IService, LLC, ET AL., Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale and Decision + Order on Motion duly entered on November 6, 2025, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the Room 252 of the New York County Courthouse, 60 Centre Street, New York, NY 10007 on January 28, 2026 at 2:15 p.m., premises known as 20 West 84th Street, Unit 3C, New York, NY 10024. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County, City and State of New York, Block 1197 and Lot 1011 together with an undivided 3.383 percent interest in the Common Elements. Approximate amount of judgment is $1,670,086.58 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index # 850437/2024.Paul Sklar, Esq., Referee Friedman Vartolo LLP, 85 Broad Street, Suite 501, New York, New York 10004, Attorneys for Plaintiff. Firm File No.:232425-2

Notice of Qualification of TD FINANCIAL PRODUCTS LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/18/25. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 07/21/10. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co. (CSC), 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: CSC, 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State of the State of DE, 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT. NEW YORK COUNTY. USALLIANCE FEDERAL CREDIT UNION

Notice of Formation of 5E44 ST PH PURCHASER LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/23/25. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Meister Seelig & Fein PLLC, 125 Park Ave., 7th Fl., NY, NY 10017. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF NEW YORK U.S. BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS TRUSTEE FOR BNC MORTGAGE LOAN TRUST 2006-2, MORTGAGE PASS-THROUGH CERTIFICATES, SERIES 2006-2, Plaintiff AGAINST REGINALD BORGELLA, ET AL., Defendant(s) Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale duly entered April 1, 2025, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction at the New York County Courthouse in Room 252, located at 60 Centre Street, New York, NY on January 14, 2026 at 2:15 PM, premises known as 140 7th Avenue, Unit 7R, New York, NY 10011. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, City of New York, County of New York, State of New York, Block 768, Lot 1203. Approximate amount of judgment $1,043,907.05 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index #850069/2014. Scott H. Siller, Esq., Referee Gross Polowy, LLC 1775 Wehrle Drive Williamsville, NY 14221 00-299477 87843 Notice of Qualification of PEARL CARE 12, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 09/12/25. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 06/03/25. Princ. office of LLC: 220 5th Ave., 17th Fl., NY, NY 10001. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State of the State of DE, 401 Federal St., Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT COUNTY OF New York, Bank of America, National Association as Successor Merger to LaSalle Bank National Association aS trustee for WAMU 2005-AR7, Plaintiff, vs. Nicholas J. Sands a/k/a Nicholas Sands, ET AL., Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale and Decision + Order On Motion duly entered on April 23, 2025, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction in Room 252 of the New York County Courthouse, 60 Centre Street, New York, NY 10007 on January 21, 2026 at 2:15 p.m., premises known as 30 East 76th Street, Unit# 7B, a/k/a 971/973 Madison Avenue, Unit# 7B, New York, NY 10021. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County of New York, City and State of New York, Block 1390 and Lot 1101 together with an undivided 3.639 percent interest in the Common Elements. Approximate amount of judgment is $1,300,211.64 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to the provisions of filed Judgment Index #810068/2010. Stephen Markman, Esq., Referee Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott, LLC, 10 Bank Street, Suite 700, White Plains, New York 10606, Attorneys for Plaintiff Notice of Formation of WASABI SUSHI BENTO 400 MADISON LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/19/25. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 122072543. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Notice of Formation of EASTVIEW 400 LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/18/25. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Ani Gabrellian, 450 E. 83rd St., Apt. 20B, NY, NY 10028. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT ‑ COUNTY OF NEW YORK. 57TH ST. VACATION OWN‑ ERS ASSOCIATION, INC., BY AND THROUGH ITS BOARD OF DIRECTORS, Plaintiff ‑against‑ BRADLEY RAY WILL, CATHERINE SUE WILL, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated September 17, 2025, I, the undersigned Ref‑ eree will sell at public auction in Room 130 of the New York County Courthouse, 60 Centre Street, New York, NY on Janu‑ ary 14, 2026 at 2:15 p.m. prem‑ ises situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County of New York, City and State of New York, being an undivided ownership interest as tenant‑in‑common with other owners in the Timeshare Unit in the building located at 102 West 57th Street, New York, NY. Together with an appurtenant undivided 0.00986400000% common interest percentage. This is a foreclosure on own‑ ership interest in a timeshare unit, a studio penthouse on a floating use basis every year, in accordance with and subject to declarations. Declaration of Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions dated October 10, 2008 and October 31, 2008 as CFRN # 2008000426142 as re‑ corded in the Office of the City Register, County, City and State of New York. The Timeshare Unit is also designated as Block 1009 and Lot 37. Said premises known as 102 WEST 57TH STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10019 Approximate amount of lien $18,314.89 plus interest & costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale. Index Number 850349/2023. CHRISTY M. DEMELFI, ESQ., Referee DRUCKMAN LAW GROUP PLLC Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 242 Drexel Avenue, Westbury, NY 11590 DLG# 39342

Notice of formation of FIVE IRON GOLF WILLIAMSBURG LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 07/18/2025. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to JARED SOLOMON: 883 Avenue of the Americas FL 3, NYC, NY 10001. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of Formation of CROWN ACQUISITIONS VENTURES LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 12/04/25. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 73 Spring St., 5th Fl., NY, NY 10012. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 122072543. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Notice of formation of MPS GTM Advisory LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/06/2025. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to United States Corporation Agents, Inc.: 7014 13th Avenue Suite 102, Brooklyn, NY 11228. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. NOTICE OF QUALIFICATION OF CMFH LLC. CMFH LLC filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY): Application for Authority on July 6, 2022. Office Location New York County. LLC formed in Delaware on May 10, 2022. SSNY has been designated as agent upon whom process against it may be served. The Post Office address to which the SSNY shall mail a copy of any process against the LLC served upon him/her is: Corporation Service Company, 251 Little Falls Drive, Wilmington, DE 19808. The principal business address of LLC is 2218 Broadway, Num 218, New York, NY 10024. Certificate of LLC filed with Secretary of State of Delaware located at: 401 Federal Street, Suite 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful act or activity. NOTICE OF FORMATION of WEISFUSE & WEISFUSE LLC. Articles of Organization filed with Sec. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/24/2025. Office location: New York Co. SSNY designated as agent upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail a copy of process to 11 Broadway, Suite 464, New York, NY 10004. Purpose: Law

BY MERGER WITH NEW YORK METRO FEDERAL CREDIT UNION, Pltf. vs., UNKNOWN HEIRS AT LAW OF JAMES MCCASKILL A/K/A JAMES MC CASKILL, HIS NEXT OF KIN, DISTRIBUTEES, EXECUTORS, ADMINISTRATORS, TRUSTEES, DEVISEES, LEGATEES, ASSIGNEES, LIENORS, CEDITORS, AND SUCCESSORS IN INTEREST, AND GENERALLY ALL PERSONS HAVING OR CLAIMING, UNDER, BY OR THROUGH SAID DEFENDANT WHO MAY BE DECEASED, BY PURCHASE, INHERITANCE, LIEN OR OTHERWISE, ANY RIGHT TITLE OR INTEREST IN AND TO THE PREMISES DESCRIBED IN THE COMPLAINT HEREIN, ALL OF WHOM AND WHOSE NAMES AND PLACES OF RESIDENCE ARE UNKNOWN TO THE PLAINTIFF AND CANNOT AFTER DILIGENT INQUIRY BE ASCERTAINED, et al Deft. Index #850257/2022. Pursuant to judgment of foreclosure and sale entered August 12, 2024, I will sell at public auction in Room 252 of the New York County Courthouse, 60 Centre Street, New York on January 14, 2026 at 2:15 p.m. prem. k/a 61 West 126 th Street, New York, NY 10027 a/k/a Block 1724, Lot 11. Approximate amount of judgment is $180,402.84 plus cost and interest. Sold subject to terms and conditions of filed judgment and terms of sale and the right of the United States of America to redeem within 120 days from the date of sale as provided by law. CHRISTY M. DEMELFI, Referee., MARGOLIN, WEINREB & NIERER, LLP., Attys. for Pltf., 575 Underhill Blvd., Suite 224, Syosset, NY. #102646 Notice of Formation of 4 CHEQUIT AVENUE LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/17/25. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 14 Sutton Pl. South, Apt. 7B, NY, NY 10022. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to the LLC at the addr. of its princ. office. Purpose: Any lawful activity. PLAY WORLD USA LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 11/03/25. Office: New York County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 34 West 33rd Street, 7th Floor, New York, NY 10001. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.

Notice of formation of Bondd Pilates LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/10/2025. Office location: New York. SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Danielle Daubert: 370 E 76th Street Apt C909, New York, NY 10021. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of Formation of CPG LIBERTY LANDING LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 12/05/25. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 116 E 27th St., 11th Fl., NY, NY 10016. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207. Purpose: Real estate investment. Notice of Formation of DAVIDSON GI, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/07/25. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 24 W. 40th St., 16th Fl., NY, NY 10018. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Peter Davidson, c/o Aligned Climate Capital at the princ. office of the LLC. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Notice of Formation of PATRICIA LANE LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/07/25. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 122072543. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Notice of formation of Flight 13 LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/16/2025. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Dominic Palombo: 171 E 77th Street 5F New York, NY 10075. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of Formation of GOLDEN LUCY HOLDINGS LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/18/25. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Ani Gabrellian, 450 E. 83rd St., Apt. 20B, NY, NY 10028. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025 • 27

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

101 LEGAL NOTICES

195LEGAL HELP WANTED 101 NOTICES

101 LEGAL NOTICES

REFEREE'S NOTICE OF SALE IN FORECLOSURE

SUPREME COURT - COUNTY OF NEW YORK. 453 EAST 83RD FUNDING L.P., Plaintiff -against- 453 EAST 83RD STREET LLC, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale and Decision and Order on Motion dated July 9, 2024 and entered on December 16, 2024, the Decision and Order on Motion dated and entered on February 5, 2025, and the Decision and Order on Motion dated October 31, 2025 and entered on November 6, 2025, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction in Room 252 of the New York County Courthouse, 60 Centre Street New York, NY 10007 on January 14, 2026 at 2:15 p.m. premises situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County, City and State of New York, bounded and described as follows: BEGINNING at a point on the Northerly side of East 83rd Street, distant 76 feet 6 inches Westerly from the corner formed by the intersection of the Westerly side of York Avenue (formerly Avenue A) with the Northerly side of East 83rd Street; being a plot 102 feet 2 inches by 20 feet by 102 feet 2 inches by 20 feet. Block: 1563 Lot: 121 Said premises known as 453 EAST 83RD STREET, NEW YORK, NY 10028 Approximate amount of lien $7,857,890.82 plus interest & costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale. Index Number 850183/2023. ELAINE SHAY, ESQ., Referee KRISS & FEUERSTEIN LLP Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 360 Lexington Avenue, Suite 1200, New York, NY 10017

SUPREME COURT ‑ COUNTY OF NEW YORK. EMIGRANT BANK, SUC‑ CESSOR BY MERGER WITH EMIGRANT SAVINGS BANK‑MANHATTAN, Plaintiff ‑against‑ FLORENCE SOM‑ MER a/k/a FLORENCE T. SOMMER, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered on October 23, 2025, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction in Room 252 of the New York County Court‑ house, 60 Centre Street, New York, NY on January 21, 2026 at 2:15 p.m. premise situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, City, County and State of New York, known as Unit No. 9P in the building known as "Continental Towers Condominium" together with an undivided 0.168% interest in the common elements. Block: 1542 Lot: 1116 Said premises known as 301 EAST 79TH STREET, #9P, NEW YORK, NY Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale. Index Number 850681/2023. JEFFREY R. MILLER, ESQ., Referee Terenzi & Confusione P.C. Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 401 Franklin Avenue, Suite 304, Garden City, NY 11530

SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF NEW YORK

SUPPLEMENTAL SUMMONS SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK COUNTY OF NEW YORK HNY CLUB SUITES OWNERS ASSOCIATION INC., BY AND THROUGH ITS BROAD OF DIRECTORS, Plaintiff, -against- UNKNOWN HEIRS AND DISTRIBUTEES OF THE ESTATE OF STEPHEN J. GRAFF, if living, and if they be dead, any and all persons unknown to Plaintiff, claiming, or who may claim to have an interest in, or generally or specific lien upon the real property described in this action; such unknown persons being herein generally described and intended to be included in the following designation, namely: the wife, widow, husband, widower, heirs-at-law, next of kin, descendants, executors, administrators, devisees, legatees, creditors, trustees, committees, lienors and assignees of such deceased, any and all persons deriving interest in or lien upon, or title to said real property by, through or under them, or either of them, and their respective wives, widows, husbands, widowers, heirs-at-law, next of kin, descendants, executors, administrators, devisees, legatees, creditors, trustees, committees, lienors and assigns, all of whom and whose names, except as stated, are unknown to Plaintiff, Defendants. INDEX NO. 850265/2023 FILED: 12/3/2025 Plaintiff designates New York County as the place of trial pursuant to CPLR §507 TO THE ABOVE NAMED DEFENDANTS: YOU ARE HEREBY SUMMONED to answer the Complaint in this action, and to serve a copy of your answer, or, if the complaint is not served with this Summons, to serve a notice of appearance on the Plaintiff's attorney within 20 days after the service of this Summons, exclusive of the day of service or within 30 days after completion of service where service is made in any other manner than by personal delivery within the State. In case of your failure to appear or answer, judgment will be taken against you by default for the relief demanded in the Complaint. The foregoing Summons is served upon you by publication pursuant an Order of the Hon. Francis A. Kahn III, a Justice of the Supreme Court, of New York County, dated November 24, 2025 and entered November 24, 2025 Dated: November 21, 2025, Westbury, New York. Maria Sideris, Esq., DRUCKMAN LAW GROUP PLLC Attorneys for Plaintiff 242 Drexel Avenue Westbury, New York 11590 (516) 876-0800

SUPREME COURT - COUNTY OF NEW YORK MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY FEDERAL CREDIT UNION, Plaintiff - against - DAVIS BERGMAN, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered on January 9, 2025. I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction in Room 252 of the New York County Courthouse located at 60 Centre Street, New York, New York 10007 on the 14th day of January, 2026 at 2:15 PM. All that certain piece or parcel of real property, situate and being a part of a condominium in the Borough of Manhattan, County, City and State of New York. Premises known as 225 East 46th Street, Unit 12F, New York, NY 10017. (Block: 1320, Lot: 1723) Approximate amount of lien $327,829.92 plus interest and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed judgment and terms of sale. Index No. 850049/2023. Scott H. Siller, Esq., Referee. Stein, Wiener & Roth LLP Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 1400 Old Country Road, Suite 315 Westbury, NY 11590 Tel. 516-742-1212 MAN-79220

BREG-

Dated: November 17, 2025 During the COVID-19 health emergency, bidders are required to comply with all governmental health requirements in effect at the time of sale including but not limited to, wearing face coverings and maintaining social distancing (at least 6-feet apart) during the auction, while tendering deposit and at any subsequent closing. Bidders are also required to comply with the Foreclosure Auction Rules and COVID-19 Health Emergency Rules issued by the Supreme Court of this County in addition to the conditions set forth in the Terms of Sale. Auction Locations are subject to change. Notice of Formation of THOMPSON 2E LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 09/09/25. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Lindsey Rollman, 300 Park Ave., Ste. 530, NY, NY 10022. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Notice of Formation of TALCOTT GARDENS DEVELOPER, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 12/01/25. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 30 Hudson Yards, 72nd Fl., NY, NY 10001. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

{* AMSTERDAM*} SUPREME COURT - COUNTY OF NEW YORK. AXOS BANK, Plaintiff -againstHUDSON 805 LLC, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale dated November 26, 2024 and entered on February 3, 2025, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction in Room 252 of the New York County Courthouse, 60 Centre Street New York, NY on January 21, 2026 at 2:15 p.m. premises situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, City, County and State of New York, known as Commercial Unit No. 805-06 in the Building known as the Printing House Condominium. Together with an undivided 0.0124% interest in the Common Elements. Block: 601 and Lot: 1155 Said premises known as 421 HUDSON STREET, UNIT 805/806, NEW YORK, NY 10014 Approximate amount of lien $7,584,837.12 plus interest & costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale. Index Number 850233/2022. JEFFREY MILLER, ESQ., Referee Sheppard Mullin Attn: Benjamin Gilbert (212) 896-0682 Attorney(s) for Plaintiff 30 Rockefeller Plaza, New York, NY 10112 AMSTERDAM*} Public {* Notice M/WBE bids sought for 1677 Eastburn Avenue Bronx, NY construction project. A scope meeting will be held on December 30 . Contact bidding@taxaceny.com for details

{* AMSTERDAM*} SUPREME COURT - COUNTY OF NEW YORK. NYCTL 2021-A TRUST AND THE BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON, AS COLLATERAL AGENT AND CUSTODIAN FOR THE NYCTL 2021-A TRUST, Plaintiffs -against- EDDIE Z. CHEN a/k/a EDDIE CHEN, et al Defendant(s). Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered herein on April 15, 2024, I, the undersigned Referee will sell at public auction in Room 252 of the New York County Courthouse, 60 Centre Street New York, NY on January 14, 2026 at 2:15 p.m. premises situate, lying and being in the Borough of Manhattan, County of New York, City and State of New York, known and designated as Block 440 Lot 1301 on the New York County Tax Assessment Map. Said premises known as 427 EAST 12TH STREET, #1A, NEW YORK, NY 10009 Approximate amount of lien $598,893.24 plus interest & costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment and Terms of Sale. Index Number 158480/2022. PAUL R. SKLAR, ESQ., Referee Phillips Lytle LLP Attorney(s) for Plaintiffs 100 S. Clinton Avenue, Suite 2900, Rochester, NY 14604 {* AMSTERDAM*} Notice of Qualification of BREC PARENT GP, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/23/25. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 06/25/25. Princ. office of LLC: 345 Park Ave., NY, NY 10154. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co. (CSC), 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: c/o CSC, 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State, 401 Federal St. - Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

BOARD OF MANAGERS OF TOWERS ON THE PARK CONDOMINIUM, Plaintiff, — against — ROGER WILLIAMS, Defendant.

Index No. 152565/2023 NOTICE OF SALE

Pursuant to the judgment of foreclosure and sale entered in the Office of the Clerk of the above-named Court on April 23, 2025 (NYSCEF #68), Ronald Zezima, Esq., will sell at public auction, at the New York County Courthouse, Room 130, 60 Centre Street, New York, New York 10007 on January 28, 2026 at 2:15 p.m., Towers on the Park Condominium Unit 12E, located at 301 Cathedral Parkway, New York, New York 10026, which is designated as Tax Lot No. 1191, Block: 1846 on the Tax Map of the Borough of Manhattan. Approximate amount of lien is $ 154,383.45 plus additional common charges, assessments, late fees, legal fees, and interest that may accrue up to the date of sale. This property will be sold subject to the provisions of the judgment and terms of sale; the sale is subject to a superior lien on the property claimed by Citibank, N.A. Dated: December 4, 2025 RONALD ZEZIMA, Referee 271 North Ave. - Suite 908 New Rochelle, N.Y. 10801 (914) 633-5600 rvzesq@aol.com Attorneys for Plaintiff KELLNER HERLIHY GETTY & FRIEDMAN, LLP 470 Park Avenue South—7 th Floor New York, New York 100166951 Telephone: (212) 889-2821 E-mail: e.ebiefung@khgflaw. com Notice of Qualification of 2GC MEZZ, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/24/25. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 11/21/25. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Tarter Krinsk & Drogin LLP, Attn: Brian J. Beller, Esq., 1350 Broadway, NY, NY 10018. DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with DE Secy. of State, 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity. Notice of formation of Thriving Mind LCSW PLLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the Sec. of State of NY (SSNY) on 12/09/2025. Office location: New York County. SSNY designated as an agent of the PLLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to: 45 W 127th Street, #2, New York, NY 10027. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT BRONX COUNTY PNC BANK, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, Plaintiff against ANGELA MCGHEE AS BENEFICIARY UNDER THE LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT OF STANFORD SHAW A/K/A STANDFORD SHAW, et al Defendant(s) Attorney for Plaintiff(s) Margolin, Weinreb & Nierer, LLP, 575 Underhill Boulevard, Suite 224, Syosset, NY 11791. Pursuant to a Judgment of Foreclosure and Sale entered October 15, 2018, I will sell at public auction to the highest bidder at the Bronx County Courthouse, Courtroom 711 at 851 Grand Concourse, Bronx, New York on January 12, 2026 at 2:15 PM. Premises known as 4084 Wilder Avenue, Bronx, New York 10466. Block 4984 Lot 33. All that certain plot, piece or parcel of land, with the buildings and improvements thereon erected, situate, lying and being at Edenwald, Borough and County of Bronx, City and State of New York. Approximate Amount of Judgment is $137,370.70 plus interest, fees, and costs. Premises will be sold subject to provisions of filed Judgment Index No 32231/2015E. The foreclosure sale will be conducted in accordance with 12th Judicial District's Covid-19 Policies and the Bronx County foreclosure auction rules. The Referee shall enforce any rules in place regarding facial coverings and social distancing. Charlane Brown, Esq., Referee File # 17-0930 Notice of Registration of a Limited Liability Partnership Atlas Solomon LLP filed a Certificate of Registration with the NY Department of State on November 25, 2025. The principal office of the registered limited liability partnership (“LLP”) is located at 11 Broadway, Suite 1168, New York, NY 10004. The Secretary of State has been designated as agent of the LLP upon whom process against it may be served, and a copy of any process served upon him or her shall be mailed to 819 SW Federal Highway, Suite 301, Stuart, FL 34994. The purpose of the LLP is to engage in the practice of law.

101 LEGAL NOTICES

NOTICE OF SALE SUPREME COURT: NEW YORK COUNTY. W FINANCIAL REIT, LTD, Pltf. vs. KEY HOTELS, LLC, et al, Defts. Index #850190/2024. Pursuant to consent judgment of foreclosure and decision + order on motion entered Nov. 18, 2025, I will sell at public auction in Room 252 of the New York County Courthouse, 60 Centre Street, New York, NY on January 14, 2026 at 2:15 p.m. premises k/a 129 West 46 th Street, New York, NY a/k/a Block 999, Lot 17. Said property beginning at a point on the northerly side of 46 th St. distant 450 ft. easterly from the corner formed by the intersection of the easterly side of Broadway (formerly Seventh Avenue) and the said northerly side of 46 th Street, being a plot 37 ft. 5 ½ inches x. 100 ft. 5 ½ inches x 37 ft. 4 ½ inches x 100 ft. 5 inches. Approximate amount of judgment is $21,567,309.60 plus costs, interest and other amounts. Sold subject to terms and conditions of filed consent judgment and terms of sale. SCOTT SILLER, Referee. JASPAN SCHLESINGER NARENDRAN, LLP, Attys. for Pltf., 300 Garden City Plaza, Garden City, NY 11530. #102658 Notice of Qualification of FRED AT HOME, LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/18/25. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 11/13/25. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with DE Secy. of State, John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St., Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

M/WBE bids sought for 621 East 178th Street Bronx, NY construction project. A scope meeting will be held on December 30. Contact bidding@taxaceny.com for details

28 • December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025

101 LEGAL NOTICES

Notice of Qualification of MATSON, DRISCOLL & DAMICO (US), LLC Appl. for Auth. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/12/25. Office location: NY County. LLC formed in Delaware (DE) on 08/18/25. Princ. office of LLC: 10 High St., Ste. 1000, Boston, MA 02110. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207-2543. DE addr. of LLC: 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, DE 19808. Cert. of Form. filed with Secy. of State, John G. Townsend Bldg., 401 Federal St. - Ste. 4, Dover, DE 19901. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Notice of formation of Five Iron Golf Shaker Heights LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 04/14/2025. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Jared Solomon: 883 Avenue of the Americas, FL 3, NYC, NY 10001. Purpose: Any lawful purpose. Notice of Formation of TALCOTT GARDENS PRESERVATION GP, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 12/01/25. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 30 Hudson Yards, 72nd Fl., NY, NY 10001. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

Notice of formation of Luxe Contracting Group LLC . Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 09/21/25. Office location: New York County (Manhattan). SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company (LLC) upon whom process against it may be served. 1 •SSNY February 20, 2025 - February 26, 2025 should mail process to Luxe Contracting Group LLC: 25 JoNotice of Formation CITY101 LEGAL NOTICES 101 LEGALof NOTICES seph St Manalapan NJ, 07726. WIDE APARTMENTS PRESPurpose: Any lawful purpose. ERVATION CLASS A, LLC of AP Notice is hereby given that a Notice of Qualification license, serial #NA-0340-25CREDIT HOLDArts. of Org. filedSOLUTIONS with Secy. 103028 for beer, wine & liquor INGS (AIV) II, L.P. Appl. for of State of NY (SSNY) onof been applied for by the Auth. filed with Secy. of State Notice of Formation of has MELundersigned to sell beer, wine NY (SSNY) on 01/08/25. NY Office 11/21/25. Office location: ROSE SOUTH WORKFORCE & liquor at retail in a restaulocation: NY County. LP formed County. office (DE) of LLC: 30 rant under the ABC Law at 994 Princ. in Delaware on 12/26/24. LLC NewHudson York, NY Yards, Princ.72nd office ofFl., LP: Attn: NY,General NY Arts. of Org. filed with Columbus Secy.for Ave., 10025 on-premises conCounsel, 9 W. 57th St., 43rd Fl., 10001. SSNY designated sumption; NY, NY 10019. Duration ofas LP of State of NY (SSNY) on Limone LLC is Perpetual. designated agent of LLC upon SSNY whom pro11/26/25. Office location: NY as agent of LP upon whom process againstcessit against may itbe mayserved. be served. County. Princ. office ofNOTICE LLC:is hereby given that a shall SSNY shall mail process toto the SSNY mail process Phipps Houses, 257 Park Ave.number NA-0370-24license, Partnership at the princ. office Corporation 80of 135212 for liquor, wine, beer & of Service the LP. NameCo., and addr. South, 12th Fl., NY, NY 10010. cider has been applied for bySt., Albany, each generalNY partner are availState 12207. SSNY designated as the agent undersigned to sell liquor, able from SSNY. DE addr. of LP: wine, beer & cider atPurpose: retail in a c/o lawful Corporation Service Co., Any activity. of LLC upon whom process bar/tavern under the Alcoholic 251 Little Falls Dr., Wilmington, against it may be served. Beverage SSNY Control Law at 4371 DE 19808. Cert. of LP filed with 3rd Ave; Bronx, NY 10457 in The Secy. of State of the State shall mail process to CorporaBronx County for on premises of DE, Dept. of State, Div. of tion Service Co., 80 State St., Zion Restaurant consumption. Corps., John Townsend Bldg., Lounge Corp d/b/a Zion of formation Dover, DE 19901. Any Notice of Purpose: Octavio Albany, NY 12207-2543.and PurRestaurant and Lounge lawful activity. Valdes Advisory LLC. Articles of pose: Any lawful activity. Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on 10/22/2025. Office location: Stillwater Mental Health CounNew York County (Manhattan). seling, PLLC. SSNY designated as an agent of Limited Liability Company Arts. of Org. filed with NYSS on (LLC) upon whom process 09/19/2025. against it may be served. SSNY should mail process to Octavio Office:New York County. Valdes: octaviovald@gmail. com. Purpose: Any lawful purNYSS designated for service of pose. process;mail to 642 West 172nd Street #54 New York, NY 10032. Purpose:Mental Health Counseling. Notice of Formation of JDJ LEGACY GROUP, LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 11/07/25. Office location: NY County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to c/o Julie Kessler LLP, 60 E. 42nd St., 46th Fl., NY, NY 10165. Purpose: Any lawful activity.

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS B E S T O F 2 0 2 5 101 LEGAL NOTICES 101 LEGAL 101 LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICES castNOTICES by millions of American citizens New York 101 State Attorney General and disenfranchise voters so he can Letitia James, along with a coalition of Continued from page 2 ignore election outcomes he does 17 other attorneys general, also sent not like.” a letter on March 31 vehemently opforms, like a US passport or enhanced A coalition of voting rights orga- posing the SAVE Act. REAL ID, require time and resources nizations, like the LWV and Nation“The right to vote is the very founto get. In New York State, a Non-Driv- al Association for the Advancement dation of our democracy, but with er ID can be applied for regardless of of Colored People (NAACP), quickly this bill, Congress is threatening that citizenship or legal status. filed a lawsuit to challenge Trump’s right for millions of eligible voters,” Democratic Senatorial Campaign executive order. said Attorney General James. “The Committee (DSCC) Chair and U.S. “Our Constitution makes clear so-called SAVE Act would disproSenator Kirsten Gillibrand, Dem- that the President does not have portionately impact communities ocratic Congressional Campaign the power to regulate federal elec- of color, low-income individuals, Committee (DCCC) Chair Suzan tions – that responsibility is ex- and other vulnerable populations DelBene, and Democratic National plicitly delegated to Congress and to create a dangerous precedent. It Committee (DNC) Chair Ken Martin the states. This Order is an illegal is nothing more than a thinly veiled said in a joint statement that Trump’s and dangerous power grab, a direct attempt to suppress voter particiexecutive order “is reckless, danger- attack on American democracy, pation and I urge Congress to reject ous and illegal. It is a brazen attempt and an affront to the rule of law,” this bill and protect every American’s by Trump to throw out legal votes they said in a joint statement. fundamental right to vote.”

Voting rights

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Notice of Formation of LIBERTY LANDING DEVELOPER LLC Arts. of Org. filed with Secy. of State of NY (SSNY) on 12/05/25. Office location: NY County. Princ. office of LLC: 116 E 27th St., 11th Fl., NY, NY 10016. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to Corporation Service Co., 80 State St., Albany, NY 12207. Purpose: Real estate investment.

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December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025 • 29

FDNY EMS Local 2507 celebrates its 50th anniversary, but still wants r-e-s-p-e-c-t By KAREN JUANITA CARRILLO Amsterdam News Staff In 1996, when New York City’s Emergency Medical Service (EMS) merged with the Fire Department of New York City (FDNY), it caused a lot of turmoil. Neither organization truly wanted the merger. EMS personnel had been part of the Health and Hospitals Corporation. They felt more closely aligned with the medical field, which had nothing to do with firefighting. Firefighters believed their role was solely to combat fires, not to engage in medical duties. Combining medical and firefighting resources did help strengthen the city’s emergency response capabilities, though: EMS personnel gained improved training and updated equipment, while the FDNY was able to coordinate better and expand its services. “They started off with a lot of tension and animosity,” Oren Barzilay, president of Local 2507, the union that represents the 4,500 members of the FDNY EMS, told the AmNews. “And as the years grew, the respect for each other got better. But to this day, because of the city’s lack of acknowledging EMTs and paramedics, there’s still a huge pay gap between the two professions, and it creates a lot of division, a lack of respect for the men and women of EMS.” Wages for EMS workers remain low The merger was supposed to garner Local 2507 members better pay and benefits, but the average hourly pay for an EMS trainee in New York remains as low as $17.00 an hour. FDNY EMS employees have had uniform status since 2001, which should mean increased bargaining benefits for Local 2507 members, but the union contends the city continues to negotiate wages based on a bargaining system that grants 16% increases for all city employees regardless of base pay. With starting salaries for EMS employees in the $40,000 range, this keeps their wages low. Local 2507 has an ongoing federal lawsuit against New York City for discriminatory pay practices in EMS. In its class action lawsuit, Local 2507 claims “the City

FDNY EMS Local 2507 union members have been trailing away from EMS work because of low pay. After receiving training for EMS roles, workers will often transition to better-paying positions in other city departments. (FDNY EMS Local 2507 photo)

pays EMS First Responders substantially lower salaries than it does Fire First Responders. Fire First Responders also ‘receive more generous overtime, pension, disability, medical, dental, line of duty death, and educational benefits.’ [T]he differences in compensation result from ‘the pronounced difference in demographics’ between EMS and Fire First Responders: While EMS First Responders are ‘at least 55% nonwhite and approximately 24% female,’ only ‘14% of Fire First Responders are non-white’ and ‘less than 1%’ are female.” The Amsterdam News sent requests for comments regarding the pay differentials received by Local 2507 members to New York

City’s press office, but received no statements from the Mayor’s Office of Management & Budget or the mayor’s press secretary’s office on this subject by press time. Union members have been trailing away from EMS work because of the low pay, Barzilay insisted. After receiving training for EMS roles, workers will often transition to better-paying positions within other city departments. The union calculates that 30% of its first responders will leave EMS this year. Meanwhile, 911 response times for those who remain with EMS continue to rise. “We go to every job that the police officer goes to, that the firefighters go to, yet the gap in pay is … we’re not talking about a couple

of hundred dollars; we’re talking about tens of thousands of dollars. It’s just very frustrating,” Barzilay said. “Here we are, almost 30 years into the merger, and we’re still second-class citizens in an agency that’s predominantly white, and I have predominantly people of color and women in our union.” Despite this adversity, FDNY EMS Local 2507 plans to celebrate the 50th anniversary of its founding on May 29. Union members will come together for a gala event at Terrace on the Park in Flushing Meadows, Queens, to commemorate the organization’s inception in 1975 and recognize its first responders. The event is one of many efforts to show some appre-

ciation for the emergency medical technicians, paramedics, and fire protection inspectors who continue to work for the city yet receive near-poverty wages. EMT Ashley Diaz, a seven-year FDNY EMS Battalion 43 veteran who had her leg amputated after a car accident but continues to work as an FDNY EMT, will be one of many workers recognized for her dedication to FDNY EMS. State Senator Robert Jackson, who chairs the Civil Service & Pensions Committee, will be honored for being “a strong advocate for the retention and recruitment of EMS professionals and the introduction of hazard pay for these medical first responders in the instance of infectious disease outbreaks.”

30 • December 25, 2025 - December 31, 2025

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April 17, 2025 - April 23, 2025 • 37

The Black Sportswriters Hall of Fame inducts inaugural class at NC A&T Journalists (from left to right) Michael Wilbon, Claire Smith, Rob Parker and Bill Rhoden gathered at North Carolina A&T University this past Saturday for the induction of inaugural class of the newly formed Black Sportswriters Hall of Fame. (Black Sportswriters Hall of Fame photo)

By JAIME C. HARRIS AmNews Sports Editor This past Saturday, in the Deese Ballroom on the campus of North Carolina A&T, a historically Black college and university (HBCU) located in Greensboro, North Carolina, the newly founded Black Sportswriters Hall of Fame (BSWHoF) inducted its inaugural class. The event, organized by Black Sportswriters Hall of Fame founder Rob Parker, and supported by the NC A&T’s student chapters of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) and the Associated Press Sports Editors, welcomed longtime journalists Michael Wilbon, Claire Smith and Bill Rhoden as the first three members of BSWHoF. Wilbon is noted for his career as a beat writer and columnist for the Washington Post, author of several books and currently one of ESPN’s most prominent on-air figures. Smith is the first woman in the writers’ wing of the Baseball Hall of Fame having covered baseball for The Hartford Courant, New York Times and Philadelphia Inquirer. Rhoden, a former New York Times columnist and author of the seminal book “Forty Million Dollar Slaves,” is one of the driving forces behind ESPN’s Black-led media platform Andscape. In addition to honoring the aforementioned trio of inductees, the ceremony paid posthumous tribute to legendary sports

media figures Bryan Burwell, Thom Greer, Sam Lacy, Wendell Smith, Larry Whiteside, and Ralph Wiley, who Parker, a 2023 National Association of Black Journalists Hall of Fame inductee, coined “The Original Six.” In consummating the Black Sportswriters Hall of Fame, Parker, a native of Queens, New York and graduate of Martin Van Buren High School, whose resume includes being a former sportswriter for the New York Daily News, the first Black sports columnist for both Newsday and the Detroit Free Press, founder and editor of the baseball website MLBbro, and a current sports talk host for Fox Radio, said to this writer: “Our history in telling the stories of sports that are also deeply tied to our culture, is a result of many men and women that have paved a path for not just generations of sportswriters, but the athletes they have covered.” As an educator who has taught a baseball masterclass at North Carolina A&T and teaches a baseball writers class at the University of Southern California, Parker envisioned the BSWHoF being housed at an institution of higher learning. “I was so impressed by the students and the journalism program (at NC A&T), I thought ‘man, this would be a great place to expose students to some of the greats in the business,’” he said in a recent interview with Greensboro’s WFMY News 2.

NYC Parks hosts Jackie Robinson Day Festival in Harlem by DERREL JOHNSON Special to the AmNews At a time when African Americans were not allowed to play in Major League Baseball (MLB), Jackie Robinson played his first Major League game for the Brooklyn Dodgers at Ebbets Field in Brooklyn on April 15, 1947, breaking the modernday color barrier in the sport. In honor of Robinson, NYC Parks presented the fourth annual Jackie Robinson Day Festival at the Jackie Robinson Recreation Center at 85 Bradhurst Ave in Harlem on Saturday, April 12. Despite the rain, hundreds attended the free, family-friendly celebration honoring the iconic baseball player who once called New York City his home. “Jackie Robinson Day connects us to our vital parks initiative in NYC Parks,” First Deputy Commissioner of the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation Iris Rodriguez-Rosa exclusively told the AmNews. Though the rain kept outdoor activities from occurring, Rodriguez-Rosa shared that volunteers from various Harlem civic associations, organizations, and volunteer groups annually participate in beautifying the park in honor of Robinson. “When we talk about the equity, accessibility, and affordability at the heart of our parks mission, Jackie Robinson Day Festival embodies these values,” Rodriguez-Rosa said. “The festival is a tribute

Harlem residents celebrated baseball pioneer and civil rights activist Jackie Robinson on Saturday at the Jackie Robinson Recreation Center in Harlem. (NYC Parks / Malcolm Pinckney)

and celebration of Harlem’s vibrant spirit, community pride, and the power of recreation to bring people together,” she added. “Just as Jackie Robinson inspired millions of people, this festival encourages our city’s youth to dream big. We are exceedingly proud of the legacy that he has left, and recognizing him with this festival is something that NYC Parks is proud of doing.” Vendors and organizations on hand in-

cluded the Jackie Robinson Museum, the New York Public Library, and Animal Care Centers of NYC. Activities for children of all ages included face painting, arts and crafts, and baseball clinics. Other entertainment included musicians and an array of dancers. MLB also held its annual league-wide Jackie Robinson Day this past Tuesday, April 15, a celebration that has taken place since 2004. Every player and all on-

field personnel wore Robinson’s No. 42, a symbol of unity that began in 2009. In these emotionally and spiritually trying times when the accomplishments of those of the African Diaspora are being scrubbed from websites, removed from school curriculums and subject to book bans, it is essential in Black communities and beyond to pay tribute to the achievements of Robinson and other trailblazers.

December 25, 2025 December 31, 2025 • 37 31 June 12,-2025 - June 18,

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS B E S ST P O R F T 2S 0 2 5

Women in Sport publishes report on lack of inclusion of Black girls in sports By LOIS ELFMAN Special to the AmNews The United Kingdom-based organization Women in Sport holds the motto “Because women and girls belong.” Determining there was an issue of inclusion among Black girls in sports, Women in Sport carried out research on the topic and last month published a report entitled, “Black Girls and Sport: A Break Up Story.” The team launched a powerful companion campaign video, “Dear Sport,” in which Black girls explain why –– despite their love of sports –– they have ceased their engagement in organized sports. (https://youtu.be/TxPaloyJ3aA?si =iGjsIdD7jHC7sAzh). “We have spent the last 18 years or so researching teenage girls quite prolifically because we know it’s a really challenging life stage where girls are more likely to disengage with sports for a multitude of reasons,” said Tanya Martin, head of insight and innovation at Women in Sport. “Across the course of that research and looking at the data that

Girls that took part in the “Dear Sport” campaign uninhibitedly shared their feelings on their declining participation in organized sports. (Photo courtesy of Women in Sport)

we and other organizations had, we started to see trends. “What we found is that Black girls overall generally have a very positive attitude toward sport,” she

added. “Black girls, in particular, are twice as likely than white British girls to dream of becoming a top sports person. Yet that real love of sport that the girls have is not trans-

lating to what is actually happening on the ground. Black girls have the lowest physical activity of all girls from any ethnic group.” The research was conducted

from September 2024 through January 2025. Key points in the report are that 85% of Black girls say sport and physical activity are important for having fun and feeling happy and carefree. That number rises to 94% for those who are very active. But outside of school, only 14% of Black girls are active for 30 minutes or more on average. 32% of Black girls say they are frequently penalized or get in trouble for expressing themselves in sports and physical activity. Women in Sport is calling on sports leaders to commit to being proactive in addressing misogyny and racism through policies and effective leadership. Also, coaches need to make sports more joyful. “We recognize that women and girls are not a homogenous group, so we also work deeply to understand women and girls’ lives and needs in all their beautiful diversity,” said Martin. “We hope that this research will…get people talking about these real issues that Black women and girls are facing so that we can see shifts and get some real systemic change in sport.”

Keyshawn Davis’ career in chaos after being stripped of WBO title By DERREL JOHNSON Special to the AmNews Keyshawn Davis is in trouble again. After a majority decision victory over Nahir Albright in October 2023 was ruled a no-contest after he tested positive for marijuana, the Norfolk, Virginia native was stripped of his WBO lightweight world championship this past weekend. Scheduled to fight Edwin De Los Santos in the main event on Saturday night at his hometown Scope Arena in a match slated to be nationally televised on ESPN, Davis weighed in at 139.3 pounds, 4.3 pounds over the 13lb limit. As a result, the fight was canceled and Davis’ belt taken away by the WBO. It got worse for Davis after his brother, Kelvin Davis, lost to Albright by a majority decision in their WBC U.S. Silver junior-welterweight title bout on the same card, Keyshawn and Kelvin engaged in a physical altercation with Albright in the tunnel of the Scope. An assault report was filed with the Norfolk Police Department and a video of the scuffle appears to confirm the allegations made by Albright, which Kelvin Davis denied on social media.

The combination of events suggests that the 26-year-old Keyshawn Davis, who is 13-0 with a no-contest on his record as a professional, is not at a point in his career where he possesses the necessary self-discipline to be a longtime champion and event headliner. The 2020 Tokyo Olympics lightweight silver medalist would have been the featured boxer on a major card at the Scope for the second time. Instead, a suspension could, and should be in his future. His failure to make weight and confrontation with Albright was a stain on the sport, and blatant disregard for his opponent, promoter (Top Rank) and ESPN. MMA fighter Sean O’Malley invoked a torn labrum ––that he later had surgery on –– as the reason he lost his UFC bantamweight title to Merab Dvalishvili by a unanimous decision, last September. O’Malley couldn’t use injury as a reason in their rematch Saturday at the Prudential Center in Newark as Dvalishvili defended his title by dominating the first two rounds in defeating him by submission in the third round at UFC 316. Kayla Harrison won

Keyshawn Davis (left), pictured knocking out Denys Berinchyk at Madison Square Garden in February to win the WBO lightweight title, was stripped of his belt last weekend. (Mikey Williams/Top Rank photo)

the UFC women’s bantamweight championship after dominating Julianna Pena and earning a second-round submission.

Next Saturday at the Theater at Madison Square Garden, IBF world junior welterweight champion and Brooklyn native, Rich-

ardson Hitchins (19-0, 7 KOs), who is 27, will face former champion George Kambosos Jr. (22-3-0, 10 KOs), who is 31.

32 25, 2025 9, - December 31, 2025 40 • December April 3, 2025 - April 2025 42 26,

THE NEW YORK AMSTERDAM NEWS

Sports Harlem boxer overcomes epilepsy to continue career By DERREL JOHNSON Special to the AmNews

trained so hard to do: fight back. “I just want to prove to be an inAM News spiration to others and, most imFor many, if not most aspiring portantly, always stay self-motivated 09/05/24 boxers, suffering a seizure and and know that anything is possible subsequently being diagnosed and I’m only here once, so I’m going with epilepsy would be the end of to do what I want to do and do it by their pursuits inside the ring. But the will of God.” Harlem’s Rodney Phoenix is not Phoenix, who trains and repreAM News sents the Harlem House of Chamlike most people. “When I found out (about09/12/24 the ep- pions, recently won the 176lb Six ilepsy diagnosis) I was really emo- Borough Championship in the elite tional, but I just felt like boxing is my light heavyweight division. calling,” he shared exclusively with “Rodney represents everything the AmNews. The 25-year-old began Harlem House of Champions stands boxing when he was 15 years old for — discipline, community, and AM News to stay out of trouble, and from the faith. His story is a reminder that outset, Phoenix remained consistent 09/19/24real champions don’t just train hard, in his commitment and discipline. they lead by example,” said Ronnie “It is just something that just Love, Phoenix’s coach and founder puts me in a different state of of the health and wellness organizamind. It is my therapy. Without it, I tion located at 236 West 135th Street. don’t know where I wouldAM be, News you Phoenix is also a gym teacher at know, run the streets or whatever it Future Leaders Institute Charter was.” So, when epilepsy manifest09/26/24School in Harlem and is motivated ed in Phoenix’s late teens, poten- by the kids he works with. tially taking away something that “I love the kids, and I have been is deep in his heart, he did what he working with them since I gradu-

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ated (from Lehman College with a bachelor’s degree in recreational AM News education) in 2020,” he said. Phoenix was also recently baptized at 11/21/24 Abyssinian Baptist Church, one of Harlem’s most well known houses of worship. “I feel like it’s always important to give back to the next generation, AM News and being young, I just feel like the (Future Leaders students) are like 11/28/24 my little siblings in a way.” Phoenix emphasized that his influence on youth encompasses much more than their physical fitness. AM News “Anytime I see a kid that’s down, they always know they always talk 12/5/24 to Coach Rodney. It is always being that mentor because I did not have that in school, and nobody really got to talk to me as a kid, so I always wantAM to come Newstalk to the kids and just always give back.” Phoenix will next compete on 12/12/24 Saturday, April 5, at the Frederick Samuel Community Center, located at 669 Malcolm X Blvd. Doors open

Boxer Rodney Phoenix has not allowed epilepsy to stifle his love of and competitive participation AM News in the sport. (Antonio Guiseppe photo)

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Square Garden Thursday, April 10. Ring Masters winners earn their way to the National Golden Gloves, which will take place in Tulsa, Oklahoma, from May 11-18.

AM News Jazz Chisholm Jr., off to a hot start, can be the NY Yankees X-Factor 01404 01514 10/03/24 12/19/24 03/06/25 11/27/25 Yankees third baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr., mirroring the team, is off to a hot start at the plate to open the 2025 MLB season. AM News (AP Photo/Pamela Smith)

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The New York Yankees are off to a strongAM start to the 2025 MLB season. News They were 3-1 prior to hosting the 12/26/24 Arizona Diamondbacks in the Bronx last night and set Major League Baseball’s all-time record of 17 home runs through the first four games of a season. A major factor in their exAMoffense? News Jazz Chisholm Jr., plosive a rising star poised to make a huge 01/02/25 impact in the Bronx. Chisholm wasted no time making his presence felt, launching three home runs in the Yankees’ opening series against the Milwaukee BrewAM Newsa thrilling two-homers, including er game on Sunday in the Yankees 01/09/25 12-3 win. With his power, speed, and knack for getting on base, the dynamic 27 year old from the Bahamas is shaping up to be a game changer for this new-look Yankees AM Newsin the cleanup spot squad. Slotted behind perennial MVP candidate 01/16/25 Aaron Judge, Chisholm adds another dangerous weapon to an already stacked lineup.

The Yankees were in desperate need of his versatility, athleticism, and elite baserunning last season. Acquired at last season’s MLB trade deadline from the Miami Marlins, AMNews News AM Chisholm quickly made his mark in 03/13/25 pinstripes, playing 46 12/4/25 games at third base while hitting a steady .273 with an impressive .825 OPS. His contributions helped propel the Yankees to the postseason and secured his AMNews News second career playoffAM appearance. Interestingly, Chisholm hadn’t 03/20/25 12/11/25 played in the infield consistently since early in his career with the Marlins. After transitioning to the outfield in 2022 to accommodate Miami’s roster needs, he proved AM News AM News his adaptability once again by returning to the infield for New York. 03/27/25 12/18/25 However, for the 2025 season, he’ll be making another shift — this time back to his natural position at second base. The move to second AM News should pay huge AM divi-News dends for the Yankees. 04/03/25 12/25/25 Chisholm boasts a solid career fielding percentage of .970 at the position,

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with only 19 errors across five seasons. His defensive prowess, combined with his offensive firepower, makes him an invaluable asset for a Yankees team determined to chase another championship. With Chisholm now settled in and thriving, Yankees fans have every reason to be excited. If his electric start to 2025 is any indication, the Bronx Bombers might have just found their missing piece. Coming into the 2025 season, the Yankees faced several unanswered questions, one of the biggest of which was just how good can Jazz Chisholm Jr. be? If his early performance is any indication, he’s poised to be an All-Star in the Bronx and could be the spark that helps propel the Yankees back to the World Series.

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